For Women’s History Month in 2020, Tessera Arts Collective honored six women-identifying abstract artists of color through a street art campaign in collaboration with Philadelphia artist Symone Salib. Inspired by National Museum of Women in the Arts ’s #5WomenArtists campaign, we celebrated these women for more than just their contributions to abstract art; by choosing abstraction, they opened up a new channel of expression for us through which to process and communicate our individual and collective experiences with marginalization. In addition to being artists, they have also been professors, curators at some of the world’s most prestigious museums, gallery owners, best selling authors, and community activists running community art programs and cultural art centers.
As an organization focused on supporting women-identifying abstract artists of color, we felt it was important to continue to honor these women specifically for breaking barriers and shifting culture forward, both in and outside of the art world, and especially while at least four of them are still here with us. As Black and Brown abstract artists ourselves, we recognize them as pioneers who carved out paths for us to follow in a white and male dominated art world.
We were especially excited to highlight Philadelphia natives Howardena Pindell and Barbara Chase-Riboud, as they are alumni of local institutions like Philadelphia High School for Girls and Temple University’s Tyler School of Art. Their work is part of the permanent collections of both the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
Other artists featured: Carmen Herrera, Mary Lovelace O’Neal, Alma Thomas, and Bernice Bing.
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in these artist’s careers and work. Howardena was recently awarded a fellowship from United States Artists, Mary’s first show in New York City in over 25 years closes later this month at Mnuchin Gallery and has another opening at MOAD in San Francisco this spring. Barbara was just namedas a participating artist in the triennial Prospect New Orleans, and at nearly 105 years old, Carmen is taking her work to new levels with outdoor sculptures and murals across New York City. While these artists have had to contend with obscurity in the past, it is encouraging to think that this growing interest and recognition of their work could mean that Black and Brown womxn creating abstract art both now and in the future won’t be so easily overlooked.
During the months of March and April portraits were posted at the following locations:
Queen’s Memorial Library (Alma Thomas)
Wooden Shoe Books (Mary Lovelace O’Neal)
Harriet’s Bookshop (Barbara Chase-Riboud)
BOK Building (Howardena Pindell)
Kung Fu Necktie (Bernice Bing)
Intersection of 12th & Ridge Ave (Carmen Herrera)
We’d like to thank Symone for collaborating with us to honor these women. We’d also like to thank the Philadelphia area businesses and public spaces that partnered with us to bring this specific bit of art history to neighborhoods around the city, as well as our donors and patrons whose financial contributions have made this project possible.