Alvia Wardlaw | |
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Born | |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | Wellesley College NYU University of Texas Austin |
Occupation | Professor |
Alvia J. Wardlaw (born November 5, 1947) is an American art scholar, and one of the country's top experts on African-American art. [1] She is Curator and Director of the University Museum at Texas Southern University, an institution central to the development of art by African Americans in Houston. She also is a professor of Art History at Texas Southern University. Wardlaw is a member of the Scholarly Advisory Council of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and co-founded the National Alliance of African and African American Art Support groups in 1998. [2] Wardlaw was University of Texas at Austin's first African-American PhD in Art History. [3]
From 1995 to 2009, Wardlaw was Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where she organized more than 75 exhibitions on African and African-American art. [4] She was adjunct curator of African-American Art at the Dallas Museum of Art in 1994. Her exhibition The Quilts of Gee's Bend, a collection of quilts by outstanding quilters from Alabama, broke attendance records at major museums across the 11 cities to which it traveled [2] and was one of the most talked-about museum shows of 2002 in America and beyond. She has presented exhibitions that added to the American art canon the work of major, previously undercelebrated African-American artists, in particular John Biggers, Thornton Dial and Kermit Oliver. [5] Her own photographs were also shown across Texas. She grew up and lives in Third Ward, Houston, Texas.
Wardlaw received a B.A. degree in Art History from Wellesley College in 1969. [6] In 1986, she earned an M.A. degree in Art History from the New York University Institute of Fine Arts. [6] In 1996, she received a Ph.D. degree in Art History from the University of Texas at Austin. [6]
Wardlaw has historicized John Biggers' art philosophy, based in large part on his travels to Africa and his celebration of the African-American community, his legacy and impact on student artists who studied with him, and his impact upon the modern art world. [8] She has mentored countless students of color to pursue careers in the museum field, ranging from curatorial to conservation positions.
Alvia Wardlaw | |
---|---|
Born | |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | Wellesley College NYU University of Texas Austin |
Occupation | Professor |
Alvia J. Wardlaw (born November 5, 1947) is an American art scholar, and one of the country's top experts on African-American art. [1] She is Curator and Director of the University Museum at Texas Southern University, an institution central to the development of art by African Americans in Houston. She also is a professor of Art History at Texas Southern University. Wardlaw is a member of the Scholarly Advisory Council of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and co-founded the National Alliance of African and African American Art Support groups in 1998. [2] Wardlaw was University of Texas at Austin's first African-American PhD in Art History. [3]
From 1995 to 2009, Wardlaw was Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where she organized more than 75 exhibitions on African and African-American art. [4] She was adjunct curator of African-American Art at the Dallas Museum of Art in 1994. Her exhibition The Quilts of Gee's Bend, a collection of quilts by outstanding quilters from Alabama, broke attendance records at major museums across the 11 cities to which it traveled [2] and was one of the most talked-about museum shows of 2002 in America and beyond. She has presented exhibitions that added to the American art canon the work of major, previously undercelebrated African-American artists, in particular John Biggers, Thornton Dial and Kermit Oliver. [5] Her own photographs were also shown across Texas. She grew up and lives in Third Ward, Houston, Texas.
Wardlaw received a B.A. degree in Art History from Wellesley College in 1969. [6] In 1986, she earned an M.A. degree in Art History from the New York University Institute of Fine Arts. [6] In 1996, she received a Ph.D. degree in Art History from the University of Texas at Austin. [6]
Wardlaw has historicized John Biggers' art philosophy, based in large part on his travels to Africa and his celebration of the African-American community, his legacy and impact on student artists who studied with him, and his impact upon the modern art world. [8] She has mentored countless students of color to pursue careers in the museum field, ranging from curatorial to conservation positions.