Beauford on the Web

Today I'm sharing links to three Internet articles / posts about Beauford that I think you'll enjoy. Click on the links at the end of the brief descriptions below to access the articles.

Oh Freedom! Beauford Delaney

"Oh Freedom!" is "an interdisciplinary resource that helps K–12 teachers and students discover the history, influence, and legacy of the Civil Rights movement by exploring more than three dozen artworks from the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture." The Smithsonian has included Beauford's Can Fire in the Park in the group of works it is using to teach African-American Civil Rights through American Art.

Oh Freedom! Beauford Delaney

Can Fire in the Park
(1946) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Beauford Delaney

HiSoUR is a nonprofit Web platform for art enthusiasts, whose vision is "Bringing art to life by making people think, feel and be inspired. creating unforgettable art experiences for all, while inspiring positive change locally." It presents clear and succinct review of Beauford's life, using his Can Fire in the Park to illustrate the essay (which is without punctuation).

Beauford Delaney

Covid-19 delays long-planned documentary on Black Abstract Expressionist painter Beauford Delaney

Freelance writer Karen Chernick recently published an article about Beauford's gravesite in Atlas Obscura. Inspired by the conversations we had as part of her research, she decided to write this piece about the full-length documentary, So Splendid a Journey, for which the COVID-19 pandemic is contributing to delayed production.

Covid-19 delays long-planned documentary on Black Abstract Expressionist painter Beauford Delaney

If you'd like to give to support So Splendid a Journey, click on the link beneath the image below.

Beauford Delaney: So Splendid a Journey

Hidden Paris: Beauford Delaney

Hidden Paris is a podcast for all lovers and residents of Paris, hosted by British/American expat (reared in Ireland, Italy and the US!) Mariamne Everett. Mariamne learned about the work I do at Entrée to Black Paris and asked me to do a four-part interview on various topics pertaining to African diaspora history, culture, and contemporary life in Paris. 

Of course, I couldn't do such an interview series without devoting one of them to Beauford! Click on the link beneath the Hidden Paris logo to listen:

Black Paris: Beauford Delaney
(48:27 minutes)

Mariamne posted images of several of my favorite Beauford Delaney works on Hidden Paris' Instagram account. 

See them below.

Auto-portrait
(1965) Oil on canvas
Whitney Museum, New York
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Composition 16
(1954-1956) Oil on canvas
Museum of Modern Art, New York
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Self-portrait
(1944) Oil on canvas
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
By permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Untitled
(1959) Oil on canvas
Mint Museum, Charlotte
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Sylvia Peters Talks about Beauford

Sylvia Peters is a force of nature. 

I first met her in 2016, when she and 10 other persons from Knoxville, Tennessee descended on Paris to attend the opening of Resonance of Form and Vibration of Color, the solo exhibition of 40+ paintings and works on paper from Beauford's Paris years that was mounted by the Wells International Foundation.

Sylvia Peters "Blipps" a painting at
Resonance of Form and Vibration of Color

Since that time, she has gone on to launch Gathering Light: The Delaney Project in Knoxville. She describes the project as "a grassroots effort in Knoxville, TN that was started to bring Beauford's international endeavors and art back home to Knoxville, TN - his birthplace." Alongside an impressive list of local organizations, she is working tirelessly to preserve and promote Beauford's legacy in Knoxville. 

Peters contributed a post entitled "A Toast to the Arts" to the Les Amis blog, which describes a partnership between The Knoxville (TN) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated and the Knoxville Museum of Art (KMA) to celebrate the acquisition and unveiling of works by Beauford.

Jan and Sylvia Peters
Image courtesy of Sylvia Peters

Les Amis has published additional articles about projects she has spearheaded in Knoxville, such as the "Bringing Beauford Delaney Home" project at West View Elementary School and the installation of an historical marker in honor of Beauford and his brother, Joseph.  We published several posts in January and February 2020 to chronicle the line-up of events that celebrated Beauford during Black History Month.  We support her ultimate goal to establish a Center of Excellence that honors Beauford in Knoxville and Paris.

Peter is quoted extensively in an article called "Oil on the Water: Light Reflections on Baldwin and Delaney," which was written by D. Amari Jackson and published on the Black Art in America Website.

About midway through Jackson's article, Peters is quoted as saying: “Beauford’s paintings look like they were made last week, not 60 and 70 years ago. They’re just brilliant, they’re that vibrant." When you stand in front of Beauford's work, you see exactly what she means. 

(If you have the good fortune of being in Knoxville and if you haven't already seen Beauford Delaney and James Baldwin: Through the Unusual Door at the Knoxville Museum of Art, make haste! The show closes on October 25, 2020.)

 Signage at Knoxville Museum of Art
© Les Amis de Beauford Delaney

 

Autumn Colors

Autumn has arrived - at least in Paris!

Today, I'm sharing images of works by Beauford that make me think of - and feel the beauty of - this season.

Composition, 1964
(1964) Gouache
Signed and dated at bottom right
55 x 37 cm
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Untitled
Mixed media on canvas
Private collection
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Untitled (Yellow Abstraction)
(c. 1958-1959) Oil on paper, laid down on canvas
Image courtesy of Aaron Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Clamart Red
(1958) Oil on canvas
On loan from a private collection
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Untitled
(1962) Watercolor and gouache on paper
© Christie's Images
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Beauford in Myth of a Colorblind France

Myth of a Colorblind France is a full-length documentary that investigates the reasons behind the notion that France is a colorblind society. It explores the lives and careers of renowned African Americans who emigrated to Paris, including numerous visual artists. Among them are Barbara Chase-Riboud, Augusta Savage, and Lois Mailou Jones, and Henry Ossawa Tanner. Rare video footage of Tanner strolling in Paris with his relatives is a special treat.

Beauford is included in the roster of artists whose stories are featured in the documentary. Commentary about him is delivered by illustrator Gregory Masurovsky. He gets almost a minute of coverage, during which you can see images of sixteen of his works. Many of these, including the paintings represented below, were shown at Through the Unusual Door, the Knoxville Museum of Art's brilliant monographic exhibition that will close on October 25, 2020.

Dark Rapture
(1941) Oil on masonite
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Auto-portrait
(1965) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Self-Portrait
(1962) oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire
Court Appointed Administrator
Image courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York , NY
One of the gems presented in the documentary is this photo of scholar Michel Fabre in Beauford's studio:

Michel Fabre in Beauford's studio
Image used with the permission of Pierre Fabre
Though one might think that Fabre sat for the portrait shown behind him, the subject of the painting is actually Colin Gravois.

Beauford gifted Fabre with a small work on paper entitled Man in African Dress. This was shown in the Beauford Delaney: The Color Yellow exhibition mounted by the High Museum in Atlanta in 2002-2003 and at the 2016 Paris Resonance of Form and Vibration of Color exhibition mounted by the Wells International Foundation.

To purchasing tickets for viewing Myth of a Colorblind France, click here: https://watch.firstrunfeatures.com/products/myth-of-a-colorblind-france-at-first-run-features