On view June 17–September 11
Bob Thompson (American, 1937–1966), Homage to Nina Simone, 1965, oil on canvas, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the John R. Van Derlip Fund. © Estate of Bob Thompson, courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York. Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Arts.
Taking its title from one of his paintings, Bob Thompson: This House Is Mine traces the transatlantic career of African American artist Bob Thompson (1937–1966) as he wrestled with the exclusionary Western canon. The Whitney Museum of American Art’s 1998 Thompson retrospective raised awareness of the artist, and his presence in recent exhibitions such as Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power attests to the continued relevance of his work. Featuring paintings and works on paper from Thompson’s brief but prolific career, the exhibition offers the fullest consideration of the artist to date. Born in Kentucky in 1937, Thompson studied art at the University of Louisville and then continued his training in Provincetown, Massachusetts. There he intensified his analysis of historical European painting, using it as the scaffolding for painterly reinterpretations executed in the chromatic style of Fauvism. Thompson’s rise coincided with the emergence of the American civil rights movement, yet he spent his final years as an expatriate in Europe. Bob Thompson: This House Is Mine is a timely overview examining how legacies of dispossession, exile, and diaspora shape aesthetic innovation.
Exhibition catalogue available for purchase at the Museum Shop and at museumshop.high.org. Members receive 10% off Shop purchases.
Bob Thompson (American, 1937–1966), Garden of Music, 1960, oil on canvas, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Connecticut; The Ella Gallup Sumner and Mary Catlin Sumner Collection Fund. © Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York. Photo: Allen Phillips/Wadsworth Atheneum.
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Member Preview Day
Thursday, June 16, 12 noon–5 p.m.
Members see it first and free. Register today to see this exhibition before it opens to the public!
Preregistration is required. Visit high.org/bob-thompson-preview for more information and to reserve free
timed tickets.
