For the first day of Black History Month, Google celebrated 19th-century sculptor Edmonia Lewis with a doodle by artist Sophie Diao. Google writes, “Today, we celebrate her and what she stands for—self-expression through art, even in the face of adversity.”
Diao depicted Lewis working on her iconic sculpture The Death of Cleopatra, which is now housed in the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection.
Front-Page Femmes
The Guardian explores Nan Goldin’s photograph Self-Portrait In Kimono With Brian from NMWA’s collection.
PAPER magazine highlights Kate Hush’s “towering creations made of neon.”
Deana Haggag, the former executive director of the Contemporary in Baltimore, was named the new President and CEO of United States Artists.
The Art Newspaper announces new works by emerging Saudi women artists at an arts festival in Jeddah.
The Art Newspaper reports, “The Uffizi Galleries in Florence will show more work by female artists.”
Hyperallergic explores crimson holograms by Louise Bourgeois.
The first exhibition of 17th-century artist Michaelina Wautier will be held at the Rubens House in Antwerp in 2018.
The New York Times explores the life and work of 17th-century naturalist artist Maria Sibylla Merian.
Lebanese artist Saloua Raouda Choucair, who was known for her abstract paintings and organically shaped sculptures, died at the age of 100.
Fresh Talk speaker Ann Hamilton’s latest photo-based project is an “experiment in interpersonal connections.”
Siobhan O’Loughlin’s one-woman performance in a stranger’s bathtub is “compelling theater and a cathartic group experience.”
Hyperallergic reviews Julia Gfrörer’s graphic novella about the Black Death, Laid Waste, and describes it as “Edward Gorey meets Chantal Akerman.”
Lucinda Childs is the recipient of the American Dance Festival’s award for lifetime achievement.
Artist Paulina Olowska and choreographer Katy Pyle create dances based on a series of prints depicting Slavic deities.
No women directors were nominated for the 2017 Academy Awards.
The Frame Blog discusses the role of women in picture framing in England since the 1620s.
Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts awarded Annette Lemieux its $10,000 Maud Morgan Prize.
Abigail Gray Swartz’s painting of Rosie the Riveter graces the cover of the New Yorker.
Madonna and Marilyn Minter discuss art and protest at a panel discussion at the Brooklyn Museum.
Shows We Want to See
First Ladies: Portraits by Michele Mattei, on view through February at Cross MacKenzie Gallery, features portraits of pioneering women, including Betye Saar, Louise Bourgeois, and NMWA founder Wilhelmina Cole Holladay. Mattei’s works were exhibited at NMWA in the 2012 exhibition Fabulous! Portraits by Michele Mattei.
Doris Salcedo: The Materiality of Mourning, on view at the Harvard Art Museums, examines “the indefinite, affective qualities of mourning.”
Helen Johnson’s paintings “bring the crimes of Australia’s colonizers back to their place of origin.”
Uprise / Angry Women is an “exhibit of women in America today.”