Skip to main content
Visit Support
Menu

David C. Driskell at the University House

Glimpse works by David C. Driskell and other African American artists inside the University House through this virtual exhibition.

David C. Driskell's print The Bassist is hanging on a wall over a chair.

David C. Driskell's The Bassist hangs over a chair.

Since the University House was built on the west side of College Park campus in 2012, works from the David C. Driskell Center art collection have adorned its walls. This has been a great opportunity to showcase works by African American artists while emphasizing the University of Maryland’s commitment to the arts.

The David C. Driskell Center honors the legacy of David C. Driskell (1931-2020) - Distinguished University Professor Emeritus of Art, Artist, Art Historian, Collector, Curator, and Philanthropist - by preserving the rich heritage of African American visual art and culture.

Image of the interior of the University House, displaying artwork over a side table.

Driskell's African Women, Windows hangs in the dining room.

Born in 1931 in Eatonton, Ga., David C. Driskell was educated in Washington, D.C., at Howard University and The Catholic University of America, where he received the Master of Fine Arts degree in 1961. He was hired in 1977 as a professor of art at the University of Maryland, College Park and retired in 1998 with the title of Distinguished University Professor of Art, Emeritus.

He was the recipient of many awards, including ten honorary doctoral degrees, as well as the National Humanities Medal, awarded to him by President William J. Clinton in 2000. Driskell authored seven books on the subject of African American art, co-authored four others, and published more than forty exhibition catalogues. His scholarship highlighted the contribution of African American artists to the American art canon.

Driskell worked principally as a painter, often using collage and mixed media. After his retirement from the University of Maryland, Driskell focused on printmaking, producing about 40 prints since 2003 with Master Printer Curlee R. Holton, the Driskell Center’s Director. Click here for additional information about Driskell's life.

 

On July 1, 2020, Dr. Darryll J. Pines took over as the University of Maryland's 34th President. On his first day as UMD’s President, he sent out a statement and video outlining his goals as president and twelve initiatives. In his eleventh initiative, President Pines wrote:

Displaying David Driskell Collection at University House

David Driskell, Distinguished University Professor in the College of Arts and Humanities and recognized worldwide as an artist, scholar and historian of African American art, passed away at the age of 88 in late March [April 1, 2020] from complications of COVID-19.

In partnership with the David C. Driskell Center, my wife and I plan to display a number of Professor Driskell's works in University House during the 2020-2021 academic year. These extraordinary works, which will be enjoyed by the many visitors to University House, will remind us of Professor Driskell's remarkable contributions. They will also help us to remember and pay tribute to the many lives our community has lost to the coronavirus.

The Driskell Center is dedicating the 2020-2021 academic year to events and exhibitions celebrating Professor Driskell's life and legacy. I encourage everyone to visit the Center, once it reopens, to honor this giant of American art.

Image of the entryway of University House. The doors are open and there is a sign with information about the Driskell Center visible just inside the doorway.

The doors to the University House.

Though access to the University House is currently limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are honored to create a virtual exhibition for the enjoyment of the university community as well as our friends and supporters across the country.

The exhibition was curated by Dorit Yaron, the Center’s Deputy Director, who worked with President and Mrs. Pines to select works by David C. Driskell and a few other African American artists from the Driskell Center’s art collections. Though most of the works selected for the house are by David C. Driskell, others were selected to highlight Maryland, Marylander artists, or artists who have long worked with the David C. Driskell Center. To view the collections online, please visit here. 

Visit the Virtual Gallery Here

About the University House

The University House serves two primary purposes. The first is its role as the official campus residence for the University of Maryland president and their family. The second role of University House is as a venue for events designed to engage and recognize faculty, staff, and students and serve to reflect the mission and goals of the university and the president. Additionally, the president hosts events that engage, cultivate, and recognize significant donors to the university. University House features a catering kitchen, formal dining room that seats up to 20 guests, and a formal living room that serves as a welcoming space for guests to the president’s home and features a stenciling of the Alma Mater around the ceiling. Added up, all these public spaces take up a total of 10,000 square feet. The remaining 4,000 square feet of the facility are used as private space by the family, and feature a kitchen, sitting area, and bedrooms.

University House is a LEED Gold facility, employing a number of sustainable features to assure its compliance with the university and State’s recent Green Building initiatives. These features include a geothermal heating and cooling system, solar water heating, low energy lighting systems, an energy smart machine room-less elevator, and the use of a significant amount of recycled material. 

Curated by Dorit Yaron
Virtual exhibition designed by Aryn G. Neurock Schriner