Amalia K. Amaki

Andrea Barnwell Brownlee

At Spelman College in the mid-1930s Hale Woodruff and Nancy Elizabeth Prophet established a premiere institution for art instruction for African Americans in the Southeast. While Woodruff is widely recognized for originating the Atlanta University Annual Exhibition of Painting, Sculpture and Prints by Negro Artists, his own artistic accomplishments have not been adequately examined. Although Prophet created an impressive body of work (most of which is currently lost or destroyed) and was regarded as one of the most talented American sculptors by American and European critics alike in the late 1920s and 1930s, her work has never before been the subject of an exhibition outside of her home state of Rhode Island. Hale Woodruff, Nancy Elizabeth Prophet and the Academy brings Woodruff's and Prophet's lives and work into a critical dialogue for the first time. This volume highlights recently conserved works in Spelman College's collection, features more than fifty paintings and works on paper by Woodruff and, for the first time, presents all extant sculptures by Prophet. Highlighting what these artists were able to accomplish in Atlanta, Hale Woodruff, Nancy Elizabeth Prophet and the Academy positions Woodruff and Prophet as institution builders who challenged and transformed the academy for African Americans.

Hale Woodruff, Nancy Elizabeth Prophet, and the Academy

Katherine R. Mauter

Tuscaloosa (Choctaw for "black warrior") is one of the oldest cities in West Alabama. It shares its name with a chief who fought Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto in 1540 and a river that stretches from the Appalachian foothills in the north-central region to the floodplain and lowlands of the south. Called "The Druid City" since the 1800s, when large water oaks lined its main streets, Tuscaloosa remains a center of industry, commerce, health care, education, and cultural life, with the university being its dominant source. The former capital (from 1826 to 1846) is affiliated with the Alabama Crimson Tide, catfish, Dreamland, the Black Warrior River, a strong folk and craft tradition, and Gov. George Wallace's 1963 "stand at the schoolhouse door."

Tuscaloosa

Gloria Jean Wade Gayles

Leslie King-Hammond

Andrea D. Barnwell

Retrospective mixed-media exhibition featuring photographs, quilts, souvenir fans, and digitally manipulated photographs, incorporating fabric, beads, pearls, buttons, paint, found objects, and glitter.

Amalia K. Amaki

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