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This time last year the historic exhibition AFRICOBRA: Nation Time, an official collateral event of the Venice Biennale, opened in Venice, Italy. This monumental exhibition was one of historic importance for the vital, definitive Black Arts collective founded on the South Side of Chicago in 1968 and the Black Arts Movement in the United States, as well as international audiences curious to discover more about the ways in which the aesthetic of African American artists relates to politics, culture and identity. Capturing the sentiment of their time with a visual language of vivid colors, rhythm, compositional arrangement and shine, the artists in AFRICOBRA: Nation Time reflected how a marginalize. We are honored to be supporters of this legacy vital to 20th Century American art. Cheers to AFRICOBRA and their continued excellence!
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AFRICOBRA: Nation Time also marked a proud moment in the history of the gallery. Our first exhibition of the work of AFRICOBRA co-founder Gerald Williams premiered in 2017. Since the early days of planning that exhibition, the gallery has worked directly with Williams to assemble a historic library of ephemera documenting the first 50 years of AFRICOBRA’s existence. Since then, the gallery has continued archiving the AFRICOBRA legacy by working with and representing additional surviving co-founders Jae and Wadsworth Jarrell.
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Gerald Williams
Say It Loud, 1969 Acrylic on canvas
34 x 26 x 2 in
86.4 x 66 x 5.1 cm -
Jae Jarrell
Bird of Paradise Ensemble, Ode to Tie-Dyed Suede, 1993 - c. 2017 Tie dyed suede and acrylic on wood
80 x 20 x 20 in
203.2 x 50.8 x 50.8 cm -
Wadsworth Jarrell
Boss Couple, 1970 Acrylic on canvas
36 x 27 1/2 in
91.4 x 69.8 cm -
In 2018, Gerald Williams curated AFRICOBRA 50, a landmark exhibition at our Elizabeth St. gallery celebrating the 50th anniversary of the birth of the collective and juxtaposing historic and newer works by all of the AFRICOBRA co-founders alongside works by contemporary artists inspired by their aesthetic vision. This exhibition was the first iteration of "AFRICOBRA: Messages to the People", which premiered at MOCA North Miami during Art Basel Miami 2018. "AFRICOBRA: Nation Time" served as the next chapter in the story of this vital collective.
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Wadsworth Jarrell
Navaga, 1974 Acrylic on canvas
50 x 24 in
127 x 61 cm -
AFRICOBRA Messages to the People
Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami | Miami, FL 27 November 2018 - 24 March 2019 MOCA presents a groundbreaking exhibition celebrating the founding of AFRICOBRA – the Black artist collective that helped define the visual aesthetic of the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the collective, which came out of Chicago. November 27, 2018 – March 24, 2019
Celebrating AFRICOBRA at the 2019 Venice Biennale
Past viewing_room
