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Collections

The Driskell Center is committed to collecting, documenting and presenting African American art as well as replenishing and expanding the field of African diasporic studies.

The Art Collections

The David C. Driskell Center is proud to present and preserve its collections of works by African American artists. The collections include drawings, paintings, prints, mixed media and sculptures with works by well-known artists such as Benny Andrews, Aaron Douglas, Romare Bearden, Elizabeth Catlett, David C. Driskell, Sam Gilliam, Jacob Lawrence, Keith Morrison, Faith Ringgold, Augusta Savage, Charles White, William T. Williams, and many more. In 2007, the art collections consisted of about 100 works; today, the collections consists of close to 2,000 and continues to grow. 

In 2017, the David C. Driskell Center was awarded a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to help digitize the art and archives collections. Work is ongoing through 2020. In 2011, the David C. Driskell Center was awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts [NEA] as part of the NEA’s Access to Artistic Excellence Grant program.

The Driskell Center Art Collections currently include:

The David C. Driskell Collection

The collection includes works donated over the years by Professor David C. Driskell from his own private art collection. Among the significant works are those by artists such as Richard Barthé, Romare Bearden, Aaron Douglas, Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller, Jacob Lawrence, Augusta Savage, Alma Thomas, James Wells and other significant artists. 

The David C. and Thelma G. Driskell Collection

This unique collection was donated to the Driskell Center by Professor Driskell and his wife Thelma. It mainly consists of 150 drawings by David C. Driskell, many of them done during the 1960s while Professor Driskell traveled in Europe. These drawings were created with very organic lines and reflects Driskell’s interest in trees, building, religion, still life, and people. 

The Sandra and Lloyd Baccus Collection

In 2012, Sandra Baccus, an art lover and collector of African American art, passed away, and bequeathed to the Center a collection of more than 280 works, the majority of them by African American artists. Mrs. Baccus met Professor Driskell in the early 2000, and inspired and guided by him, she quickly amassed a large and impressive collection. She knew that the Center would present, preserve, and research the collection. Among the artists in the collection are Benny Andrews, Radcliff Bailey, Sam Gilliam, Loïs Mailou Jones, Hale Woodruff, and James Van Der Zee. 

In 2015, the Center presented Collectors’ Legacy: Selections from the Sandra and Lloyd Baccus Collection. It features 68 works and showcased diverse range of media–sculpture, painting, photography, drawing, print, and object–from an array of prominent African American and African Diasporic artists. 

The Robert E. and Jean Steele Collection

The collection was donated over the years by the second Director of the David C. Driskell Center, Dr. Robert E. Steele, and his wife, Jean, who are both major collectors of works on papers, mostly by African American artists. The collection, consists of more than 250 works, includes works by contemporary artists such as Emma Amos, John T. Biggers, Melvin Edwards, Samella Lewis, John T. Scott, Lou Stovall, and Deborah Willis.  

In 2012, the Driskell Center presented the traveling exhibition Successions: Prints by African American Artists from the Jean and Robert Steele Collection, an exhibition of works by some of the most highly regarded African American artists. Forty-five artists, using traditional printmaking techniques such as etching, monoprint, lithography, linocut and silkscreen, created the sixty-two works on display. The exhibition highlighted the remarkable focus of the Jean and Robert Steele whom, for the last four decades, have amassed a collection of thousands of prints and works on paper by African American artists. Instrumental in the Steele’s collecting has been their patronage of artist studios, galleries representing African American artists, printmaking workshops that have been established by, and focus on, African American artists, and institutions with which African American artists have collaborated. 

The African Collection

The African collection includes works donated by several collectors of African objects, among them the Wil and Irene Petty Collection, the Lester Trachtman collector, and the Esther K. Reed Collection.

The African collection includes more than 200 works from such counties and cultures as Kongo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Senufo, Yoruba, and more. This collection was amassed in part to provide hands on experiences to students who are interested in working with art objects, exploring Africa, and even creating three dimensional prints based on those objects. 

The Larry and Brenda Thompson Collection

Larry and Brenda Thompson are major collectors of African American art and generously support the Driskell Center. The Thompsons donated thirty-nine works to the Center, including by such artists as Camille Billops, Louis Delsarte, Paul Keene, Preston Sampson, Walter Williams, William T. Williams, and more.

David C. Driskell Center Collection

This collection, amassed since the Driskell Center, was founded in 2001 and includes works by African American artists donated over the years by artists, collectors, gallery owners, and many individuals who support the Center’s mission.

Donations range from one to several works, created using different medium, and range from early 1800s to the present. The collection continues to grow as we add works on a regular basis.

The Archives Collections

The David C. Driskell Center is proud to present and preserve the Professor David C. Driskell Archive of African American Art, central to the Driskell Center’s mission to expand and replenish the field of African American art. The Driskell archive was assembled over more than six decades and consists of an estimated 50,000 objects.

As mentioned above, in 2017, the David C. Driskell Center was awarded a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to help digitize the art and archives collections. Work is ongoing through 2020. The archival portion of this project concentrates on digitizing, and thus preserving for future generations, unique and vulnerable technologies in the David C. Driskell Papers, including 150 audio tapes, 90 visual reels, 1,500 photographs, 3,500 slides and many other unique resources vulnerable to degradation through aging.

In 2013, the David C. Driskell Center was awarded a $251,700 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, through the Council on Library and Information Resources’ [CLIR] Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives program. About 30% of the archive has been documented through a two-year grant awarded to the Driskell Center in 2011 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services [IMLS].

Among the unique objects in the Driskell Archive are exhibition catalogues, lectures, students’ dissertations, slides, art projects, children’s art kits about African American life and culture, magazines and, most importantly, correspondences with such nationally known artists as Romare Bearden, Elizabeth Catlett, Aaron Douglas, Jacob Lawrence, Georgia O’Keefe and James Porter. Most material included in the archive has yet to be explored; however, the contribution of Professor Driskell to the field of African American art is unquestionable.

The art collections, archives, and library are available for research by appointment; to schedule a visit, please contact the Driskell Center at driskellcenter@umd.edu.

The Driskell Center Archives currently houses the following collections:

The David C. Driskell Papers

Professor David C. Driskell (1931-2020) was one of the world’s leading authorities on the subject of African American art. As an artist, scholar, curator, and collector, his contributions to the field of African American art were innumerable. In 1949, he moved to Washington, DC and in January 1950 enrolled as a student at Howard University and graduated in 1955. During his time at Howard, Driskell earned his bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts and studied with James L. Wells, Lois Mailou Jones, James A. Porter, and James V. Herring. While at Howard, Driskell worked at the Barnett Aden Gallery in Washington, DC where he later had his first major solo exhibition in 1957. In 1953, he was awarded a scholarship to study at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Skowhegan, Maine where he was able to hone his craft as an artist. In 1955, Driskell began his decades’ long teaching career at Talladega College. He taught at Howard University from 1962-1966 and Fisk University from 1966-1977 where he was the chair of the Art Department. He joined the faculty of the Department of Art at the University of Maryland, College Park, in 1977, and served as its Chairperson from 1978-1983. In 1995, he was named Distinguished University Professor of Art and taught until his retirement in 1998. In addition to his role as an educator, Prof. Driskell was a well-known and respected curator. Perhaps his most important exhibition was “Two Centuries of Black American Art: 1750-1950” which has been the foundation for the field of African American Art History. This groundbreaking exhibition, curated for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, traveled the country and helped to introduce African American art into the American art canon. As an artist, Prof. Driskell was influenced by European artists such as the seventeenth-century Dutch artist Rembrandt and the nineteenth-century French painter Paul Cezanne, as well as by the African American master of collage, Romare Bearden. Prof. Driskell focuses on several motifs in his body of work: Self-portraits; Africa and African art; Still Life; and Landscape, often depicting pine trees in styles ranging from realism to abstraction. Beginning in the late 1980s he often worked in collage and upon his retirement in 1998, he began experimenting with printmaking.

The David C. Driskell Papers were maintained and organized by Professor Driskell since the 1950s and document the evolution of African American art as a practice and field of study as well as Driskell’s personal life. The papers of artist, scholar, curator, collector and philanthropist David C. Driskell measure 150 linear feet and date from 1800 to 2014. Most of the papers come from the years 1960–2000 and focus mainly on Driskell’s relationship to African American art. A large portion of the collection focuses on Driskell’s correspondence with various artists (many of whom are African American), museums and other institutions. These correspondences touch on both personal and professional aspects of Driskell’s life. Also found in the collection are memos, meeting agendas, curatorial notes and documents, journal entries, writings, ephemera and exhibition catalogues, as well as audio, moving image and photographic materials.

The David C. Driskell Papers were donated to the David C. Driskell Center Archives by Professor David C. Driskell. The majority of the materials were transferred to the center in 2011. Once the materials were surveyed and inventoried, they were organized into 11 series. Materials were acquired by the Driskell Center Archives in three batches. The final transfer occurred in 2015. More details on the contents of this collection can be found using our online search function, by consulting the finding aid, or by requesting a reference appointment.

The Harmon Foundation Papers

The Harmon Foundation Papers consist of materials given to Professor David C. Driskell by the former director of the Harmon Foundation, Mary B. Brady. The Harmon Foundation was established in 1922 by William E. Harmon, a real estate tycoon who desired to assist African American artists in their struggle to gain recognition in the historically segregated art world. During the foundation's tenure it supported a number of influential artists such as Loïs Mailou Jones, Hale Woodruff and Archibald Motley. Mary B. Brady was an important figure within the Foundation and served as the director from 1922 until it closed in 1967. Driskell met Brady as a junior at Howard University in 1954. From that initial meeting, Brady took a personal interest in Driskell's career and in a number of instances loaned out original art pieces from the Harmon Foundation's collection for exhibits he curated at Talladega College, Howard University and Fisk University. In 1964, Driskell received a fellowship from the Harmon Foundation to study and travel in Europe. Driskell and Brady remained friends and communicated regularly until Brady's death in 1981.

The collection is predominantly made up of correspondence between Mary Brady and artists associated with the foundation. There is also a great deal of correspondence between Driskell and Brady, all of which provides valuable insight into their relationship as colleagues and friends. Besides correspondence, the collection contains a number of newspaper articles, brochures and exhibition catalogues, which document the foundation's activities. A notable highlight of the collection includes a postcard Langston Hughes wrote to Brady in 1965. The records in this collection are incredibly fragile and require careful handling. More details on the contents of this collection can be found using our online search function, by consulting the finding aid, or by requesting a reference appointment.

The Faith Ringgold Study Room Collection

Faith Ringgold (b. 1930), painter, writer, speaker, mixed media sculptor, performance artist, educator and activist lives and works in Englewood, New Jersey. Ms. Ringgold is professor emeritus at the University of California, San Diego where she taught art from 1984 until 2002. Professor Ringgold is the recipient of more than 75 awards including 23 Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts Degrees.She has received fellowships and grants that include the National Endowment For the Arts Award for sculpture (1978) and for painting (1989); The La Napoule Foundation Award for painting in France (1990); and The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship for painting (1987). Ringgold’s art has been exhibited in museums and galleries in the USA, Europe, Asia, South America, the Middle East, and Africa. Her art is included in many private and public art collections including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The National Museum of American Art, The Museum of Modern Art, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, The Boston Museum of Fine Art, The Chase Manhattan Bank Collection, The Baltimore Museum, Williams College Museum of Art, The High Museum of Fine Art, The Newark Museum, The Phillip Morris Collection, The St. Louis Art Museum and The Spencer Museum. Ms. Ringgold is represented by ACA Gallery in New York City.Ringgold’s public commissions include Flying Home: Harlem Heroes and Heroines, two 25 foot mosaic murals installed on the uptown and downtown platforms of the 125th street Independent Rapid Transit (7th Avenue IRT) Subway station in New York City in 1996; The Crown Heights Children's Story Quilt featuring folklore from the 12 major cultures that settled Crown Heights is installed in the library at PS 90 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn; Eugenio Maria de Hostos: A Man and His Dream, (1994) A mural celebrating the life of Eugenio Maria de Hostos for De Hostos Community College in the Bronx is installed in the atrium of the college. Ringgold's first published book, the award winning, Tar Beach, "a book for children of all ages", was published by Random House in 1991 and has won more than 30 awards. Ringgold has written and illustrated a total of 18 children's books including the above mentioned Tar Beach. Ringgold has a history of jurying and curating exhibitions, such as curating the 25th anniversary exhibition of the Women’s Caucus for Art International Exhibition held in Chicago, February 1997.

The papers of artist, author, activist and educator Faith Ringgold consist of books, binders of artwork and primary source material that date from 1948–2016. The Faith Ringgold Study Room Collection is organized into 21 series, which Ringgold denotes as “galleries.” The 21 galleries fall into five larger categories: Works on Canvas (Galleries 1a-4), Works on Paper (Galleries 5-8), Works in Sculpture and Performance (Galleries 9-12), Works in Editions (Galleries 13-16) and Archives (Galleries 17-21). Galleries 1a-16 feature binders containing images of Ringgold’s artwork in various mediums, such as paintings on canvas and paper, quilts, dolls and posters. Galleries 17a-21 consist of her archives, which include books and writings by or about Ringgold, exhibition catalogues, reviews and resume items. Also found in the collection are sketches of art, correspondence, periodicals, scripts, early drafts of books and children’s stories, photos, speeches, notes, documentation of awards and honorary doctorates, interview transcripts, activist material and other ephemera. More details on the contents of this collection can be found using our online search function, by consulting the finding aid, or by requesting a reference appointment.

The Robert E. Steele Papers

The papers of Dr. Robert E. Steele, former Executive Director (2004-2012) of the David C. Driskell Center, are almost completely processed by Driskell Center Archives staff. The collection sheds light on Dr. Steele’s tenure as the Driskell Center’s Executive Director, his association with artists and his activities as a collector of the visual arts of African American artists. More details on the contents of this collection can be found using our online search function or by requesting a reference appointment.


 

The African American Artists in Washington D.C. Collection

This collection was donated by Holly Tank, who conducted interviews with African American artists who worked in Washington D.C. The interviews were meant to come together in a documentary, but the documentary was never completed. The materials in this collection, particularly in Series 1, are the videos and transcripts of the interviews. In these interviews, the artists speak about art as a universal language, a way of connecting and as self-discovery. They explore the idea that art defines us and that the artist has special gifts and responsibilities. They recall the past, e.g. coming to Howard University as a student, the key players at Howard in the early years of the art department, enduring segregation on the streets and in the museums of D.C., having a chance to display and sell paintings at the Barnett Aden Gallery, sketching soldiers for the USO in World War II and dealing with Black Power politics. They speak of their influences, about being artists in the nation's capital, about teaching in D.C. Public Schools, various curators and about how art and "beauty" are not necessarily the same thing.

Tank received several grants from D.C. Arts and D.C. Humanities, amongst others, toward a one-hour documentary on the art pioneers at Howard University (James Herring, James A. Porter, James L. Wells, Loïs Mailou Jones, Alma Tomas, Alain Locke and Alonzo Aden) as recalled by their still living students and colleagues. But the project was never completed due to funding.

The paper material in Series 2 is memorabilia that the donor had in her personal collection that relates to African American history. These materials are not related to the project specifically, but are of interest to African American history in general. More details on the contents of this collection can be found using our online search function or by requesting a reference appointment.


 

The Hayes-Benjamin Papers on African American Art and Artists

Tritobia Hayes Benjamin (1944 - 2014) was a historian and professor of African American art. As a scholar, curator, and arts community member, her contributions to the field and influence on artists and the art scene, especially in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area were numerous. In 1993, Benjamin was made full professor and later became Associate Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Director of the Howard University Gallery of Art. Benjamin eventually returned to the classroom as a student as well, earning her Ph.D. in American art history with a concentration in African -American Art from the University of Maryland in 1991, where David C. Driskell was her dissertation advisor. Her dissertation, entitled “The Life and Art of Lois Mailou Jones, American Artist” was the basis for “The Life and Art of Lois Mailou Jones,” now considered the definitive monograph of the artist. 

Compiled and organized by scholar, educator, curator, and arts community member Dr. Tritobia Hayes Benjamin over the course of her career, The Hayes-Benjamin Papers on African American Art and Artists document African American art history in the latter half of the twentieth century as well as Dr. Hayes Benjamin’s personal life. The Hayes Benjamin Papers collection measures approximately seventy-five linear feet and dates from 1928 to 2011. Most of the materials come from the years 1960-2000 with a primary focus on Benjamin’s relationship to African American art. A large portion of the collection centers on African American artists, such as Loïs Mailou Jones, as well as Hayes Benjamin’s long-standing relationships with different professional art organizations such as the National Conference of Artists. There is also a special emphasis on her interactions with and collecting practices related to the African American art scene in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. The collections include interview transcriptions; memos; meeting agendas; curatorial notes and documents; correspondence; writings; ephemera; newspaper clippings; academic lecture materials and notes; and exhibition catalogues; as well as audio, film, and photographic materials.

The Hayes-Benjamin Papers on African American Art and Artists has now been fully inventoried and is currently being processed by Driskell Center Archivists, but is available for researchers to view. Preliminary finding aids shall be added here as they become available.

The Alonzo Davis Collection

Artist, gallery owner, professor and activist, Alonzo Davis (b. 1942), has donated his archive documenting his career in the arts. Currently based in Hyattsville, Md., Alonzo Davis was born in Tuskegee, Ala., and moved to Los Angeles in his early teens. After graduating from Pepperdine University, Davis later earned his MFA in Design and Printmaking at Otis College of Art and Design (then Otis Art Institute) in 1973. It was at Otis that Davis studied with influential artist Charles White (1918-1979). Davis and his brother, Dale Brockman Davis, went on to found the Brockman Gallery in South Los Angeles in 1967. The Brockman Gallery, which the brothers owned and operated until 1991, was the first major Black-owned gallery in Los Angeles, furthering the careers of many Black artists. Alonzo Davis became involved in the California mural movement and his well-known mural, Eye on ’84, was created that year to commemorate the Olympics in Los Angeles. Davis’ vision is often expressed in mixed media works, executed in series, allowing the artist to fully “exhaust” an idea before moving on. Moreover, they often bridge the arts by, for example, involving musicians and dancers to interact with the works, notably with his Power Poles. His artistic practice is informed by a life of travel and ongoing engagement with issues surrounding climate change and the struggle for social justice.

The Alonzo Davis Collection was compiled and organized by Alonzo Davis over the course of his career and documents his contributions to African American art history as an artist, gallerist, arts administrator, and educator. The papers of artist Alonzo Davis measure approximately 55 linear feet and date from 1960 to 2019, with the majority of the materials coming from the years 1975-2010. A large portion of the collection focuses on Davis’ personal art career, specifically on his public art commissions, such as the 1984 Olympic Mural Project, as well as his work as a gallerist and administrator for the Brockman Gallery, Brockman Gallery Productions, Sacramento Metropolitan Art Commission, and A.I.R. Studio Paducah. Also found in the collection are newspaper clippings, course materials, ephemera, exhibition catalogues, memorabilia, newsletters, sketchbooks, and writings, as well as audio, film, and photographic materials.

The Alonzo Davis Collection has now been fully inventoried and is currently being processed by Driskell Center Archivists, but is available for researchers to view. Preliminary finding aids shall be added here as they become available.

The Michael D. Harris Collection

Michael D. Harris (1948 -2022) was an artist, writer, curator, poet, and scholar. In his work as a scholar he was also an activist, promoting the reexamination of the depictions of Black individuals, communities, and cultures as they are represented in art and daily life. Michael D. Harris' accomplishments included earning six degrees in subjects ranging from Studio Art, Art History, and Philosophy to African American and African Studies. He worked at institutions such as the High Museum, the Harvey Gantt African American Cultural Center, Emory University, UNC Chapel Hill, and many more. His master’s thesis and dissertation focused on the kanaga mask of the Dogon peoples and contemporary Yoruba art, respectively. Dr. Harris was a scholar of the Yoruba language as well and was known to some by his Yoruba name “Olusina,” which means “the Lord opens the way.” His artwork has been displayed in the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean.

The Michael D. Harris Collection measures approximately twenty-four linear feet with an additional 90 GB of digital files. The collection includes correspondence; taped interviews and transcriptions; photographic prints and 35mm slides; field notes from Harris’ study in Ile-Ife, Nigeria; publications and unpublished writings by and about Harris, including his poetry; records of his curation and participation in AfriCOBRA; books; newspaper clippings; and ephemera. The collection documents Harris’ development as a scholar, artist, and curator across five decades and two continents.

To begin exploring this collection visit our virtual exhibition, Imaging Self.

The Michael D. Harris Collection has now been fully inventoried and is currently being processed by Driskell Center Archivists, but is available for researchers to view. Preliminary finding aids shall be added here as they become available.