Opening Reception: Thursday, September 29, 2011 6PM-8PM
Sargent Johnson Gallery
African American Art & Culture Complex
762 Fulton St. (@ Webster St.)
September 29, 2011 – January 12, 2012 (exhibit dates)
The Sargent Johnson Gallery is pleased to present Jack White, a pioneering American artist in his first solo show in California. Born in 1931, in Benson, North Carolina, Jack White has long been recognized for his contributions to mainstream art and arts education. A self-described Abstract Impressionist, Jack White’s works strongly reflect his commitment to his African heritage. His paintings, prints and sculpture have been exhibited in numerous venues; particularly college and university exhibition spaces, such as Syracuse University where he taught for a number of years. His work has also been shown at the Asheville, NC. Art Museum, the Syracuse Community Folk Art Gallery, the Mississippi Museum of Art in Jacksonville, the GWC Museum and Cultural Center in Austin, Texas, where he currently resides and at the Galerie Zygos in Athens, Greece, among others. As a result, he has raised awareness of the work and vital importance of Black artists in the larger arts community.
Jack White’s influence is as geographically broad as it is widely acclaimed. He has had numerous solo shows and participated in group shows from New York City to Pine Bluff, Arkansas. His influence is especially felt on the college campuses where he has taught, mentored and shown his work. His work is included in several museum and private collections. Among them are the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, NYPL; the Tampa Museum of Art, the Arkansas Arts Center and the James E. Lewis Museum of Art at Morgan State University.
Historically,he serves as a link between the mid- twentieth century African American arts movements through his association and study with Professor James Lewis at Morgan State University. Following a long tradition among African American artists, he was also an expatriate artist who lived and worked in Greece for several years. Further, the significance of White’s work is confirmed by its inclusion in the collection jazz great Donald Byrd, whose holdings constitute a veritable who’s who of African American art.
This exhibition is curated by Nashormeh Lindo and generously supported by the African American Art & Culture Complex and the San Francisco Arts Commission.