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| Chuck Close, Lyle, 2006, Jacquard Tapestry, 103 x 79 in. (261.6 x 200.7 cm). Image via barbaradavisgallery.com. |
Artist to be honored at the 10th anniversary
Driskell Prize Dinner in Atlanta on May 2
From High
Museum of Art press release:
The High Museum of Art has named artist Lyle Ashton Harris the 2014 recipient of
the David C. Driskell Prize. This year
marks the 10th anniversary of the prize, which the High established in 2005 as
the first national award to honor and celebrate contributions to the field of
African American art and art history.
For more
than two decades, Harris has cultivated a diverse artistic practice ranging
from photographic media and collage to installation and performance. His work
explores intersections between the personal and the political, examining the
impact of ethnicity, gender and desire on the contemporary social and cultural
dynamic.
Known for his
self-portraits and use of pop culture icons (such as Billie Holiday and Michael
Jackson), Harris teases the viewers’ perceptions and expectations,
recalibrating the familiar with the extraordinary. Harris’ works were
previously on view in the Atlanta metro area in his spring 2013 exhibition
“Accra My Love” at Kennesaw State University’s Zuckerman Museum of Art.
As the
10th Driskell Prize recipient, Harris will be honored at the Driskell Prize
Dinner in Atlanta on May 2, 2014 at 6:30 p.m.
“Lyle
Ashton Harris’ award-winning artwork has been widely celebrated with
exhibitions, commissions and acquisitions,” said Michael E. Shapiro, Nancy and
Holcombe T. Green, Jr. director of the High. “His work tackles issues of global
and personal relevance, and it is only fitting that we recognize his artistic
excellence on the 10th anniversary of the David C. Driskell Prize.”
The
Driskell Prize, named for the renowned African-American artist and art scholar,
recognizes an early or mid-career scholar or artist whose work makes an
original and important contribution to the field of African-American art or art
history. In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the award, the High is
currently presenting the exhibition “A Decade of David C. Driskell,” which
showcases works by Driskell as well as works by Driskell Prize honorees and
others acquired by the Museum with the David C. Driskell African American Art
Acquisitions Fund and the David C. Driskell African American Art Endowment.
The
selection process for the 2014 recipient of the Driskell Prize began with a
call for nominations from a national pool of artists, curators, teachers,
collectors and art historians. Harris was chosen from these nominations by
review committee members assembled by the High Museum of Art, which this year
included Michael Rooks, the High’s Wieland Family curator of modern and
contemporary art; Naomi Beckwith, Marilyn and Larry Fields curator at the
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; and
Andrea Barnwell Brownlee, 2013 Driskell Prize recipient and director of
the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art.
The 2014
Driskell Prize Dinner is co-chaired by Lovette Russell and Jack Sawyer with
Honorary Chair F. Terry Stent. Tickets for the black-tie event can be purchased
by contacting Rhonda Matheison at rhonda.matheison@woodruffcenter.org or
404-733-4403.
About Lyle Ashton Harris
Based in
New York City, Harris is an associate professor at New York University and has
exhibited his work internationally, including at the Whitney Museum of American
Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the 52nd Venice Biennale.
Harris’
work has been acquired by major international museums such as the Museum of
Modern Art in New York; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the Museum
of Fine Arts Boston; and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, among many others.
His commissioned work has been featured in a wide range of publications,
including The New York Times Magazine and The New Yorker.
Born in
New York City, Harris spent his formative years in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. He
received his bachelor of arts with honors from Wesleyan University in 1988 and
a masters in fine arts from the California Institute of the Arts in 1990. He
recently joined the board of trustees of the American Academy in Rome.
Harris is
the recipient of numerous awards and fellowships including the 2009 Goddard
Award, the 2009 American Photography Award, the 2001 Rome Prize Fellowship, and
the 1991 National Endowment for the Arts Regional Fellowship for the Visual
Arts, among others.
About the David C. Driskell Prize
Established
by the High in 2005, the David C. Driskell Prize is the first national award to
honor and celebrate contributions to the field of African American art and art
history. Past recipients include Andrea Barwell Brownlee (2013), Rashid Johnson
(2012), Valerie Cassel Oliver (2011), Renee Stout (2010), Krista A. Thompson
(2009), Xaviera Simmons (2008), Franklin
Sirmans (2007), Willie Cole (2006) and Dr. Kellie Jones (2005). A cash award of
$25,000 accompanies the prize. Proceeds from the High’s annual Driskell Prize
Dinner go toward both the David C. Driskell African American Art Acquisitions
Fund and the David C. Driskell African American Art Endowment. Through the
David C. Driskell African American Art Acquisitions Fund, the High acquired
works by artists including Rashid Johnson, Radcliffe Bailey, Nick Cave, Willie
Cole, John T. Scott and Renee Stout.
About David C. Driskell
David
Driskell is a practicing artist and scholar whose work on the African Diaspora
spans more than four decades. The High’s relationship with Driskell began in
2000, when the Museum presented the concurrent exhibitions “To Conserve a
Legacy: American Art from Historically Black Colleges and Universities” and
“Narratives of African American Art and Identity: The David C. Driskell
Collection,” which examined African American art in the broad historical context
of modern and contemporary art. Born in 1931 in Eatonton, Ga., Driskell is
distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Maryland, College Park.
He received his bachelor of arts degree from Howard University in 1955 and his
master of fine arts degree from Catholic University in 1962. He also attended
the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine in 1953 and studied art
history in The Hague, the Netherlands, in 1964. More information about Driskell
is available at www.driskellcenter.umd.edu.
About the High Museum of Art
Founded in
1905 as the Atlanta Art Association, the High Museum of Art is the leading art museum
in the Southeastern U.S. With more than 14,000 works of art in its permanent
collection, the High has an extensive anthology of 19th- and 20th-century
American and decorative art; significant holdings of European paintings; a
growing collection of African American art; and burgeoning collections of
modern and contemporary art, photography, folk art and African art. For more
information visit www.High.org.
About The Woodruff Arts Center
The
Woodruff Arts Center is ranked among the top four arts centers in the nation.
The Woodruff is unique in that it combines four visual and performing arts
divisions on one campus as one not- for-profit organization. Opened in 1968,
the Woodruff Arts Center is home to the Alliance Theatre, the Atlanta Symphony
Orchestra, the High Museum of Art and Young Audiences. To learn more visit www.WoodruffCenter.org.
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