Spelman College’s esteemed art collection will be hitting the road for its first-ever national tour.
Titled Silver Linings: Celebrating the Spelman Art Collection, the touring exhibition will travel to five institutions across the United States.
In a statement, Dr. Liz Andrews, executive Director of the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art, said that the tour is an exciting moment to expose more people to the college’s art collection.
“Spelman’s art collection has long been regarded as a hidden gem and we have lent individual works of art for many years. Now, we are excited to share a selection of works by artists who shape our collection with audiences around the United States for the first time,” said Andrews. “Our hope is that this tour will raise awareness of the work we are doing in Atlanta to uplift Black women artists.”
The traveling exhibition is comprised of pieces from almost 40 artists from African descent spanning the 20th Century to present day. Artists featured in the exhibition include Amalia Amaki, Beverly Buchanan, Lorna Simpson, Lina Iris Viktor, and Carrie Mae Weems.
Silver Linings was originally curated by Andrews and Curator-in-Residence Karen Comer Lowe. The exhibition first ran at the Spelman Museum of Fine Art from March 2022 through June 2022 to celebrate the museum’s 25th anniversary.
The exhibition’s tour will begin at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College from September 30, 2023, until January 22, 2024.
“We are honored to be the first stop for Silver Linings: Celebrating the Spelman Art Collection. I had the privilege of experiencing the exhibition firsthand in Atlanta and was immediately struck by the strength and depth of the collection as well as the organic synergies between the histories of Spelman and Vassar, as well as the visions guiding both institutions today,” said Mary-Kay Lombino, Deputy Director.
Spelman College first began collecting art back in 1899. But the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art wasn’t founded until 1996.