In 2012, Larry and Brenda Thompson donated one hundred works to the museum from their prominent collection of works by African American artists. They also funded an endowment to support a curatorial position to study works by Black artists, both American and international. You can see works from their gift throughout the museum’s galleries, but there’s also a specific gallery that shows them off.
The Boone and George-Ann Knox Gallery now focuses on works by twentieth-century African American artists, in an installation partially designed and curated by U G A students. Shawnya Harris, the museum’s Thompson Curator, collaborated with curatorial intern Adam Miller to research, write and edit labels for the gallery, providing a fresh perspective. Miller saw firsthand what reinstalling a collection entails and notes that his favorite part of the project was learning about the individual artists, most of whom were unfamiliar to him.
Exhibition design intern Winston Lovelace also had a role in the reinstallation, working with exhibition designer Elizabeth Marable to create what he called “a natural flow and aesthetic.”
Lovelace said, “The design team wanted to exhibit these works in an innovative way that truly enhances the viewing experience of the works in our collection.” They took inspiration from the works on view to choose paint that would complement their color palette and designed a panoramic riser for sculptures.
“It was a fun experience being involved in this process and I am very excited to see the reception of the Thompson collection reinstallation,” Lovelace added.