Denver Art Museum Exhibits Trailblazing Alma Thomas Work from Smithsonian

“Her studio was in her kitchen,” said the DAM’s Vicki and Kent Logan Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Rory Padeken. He oversaw the installation of the Thomas show. Melissa Ho, curator of 20th-century art at SAAM since 2016, curated the exhibit.

“We are extremely fortunate and privileged at SAAM to have the most extensive collection of Thomas’ paintings anywhere, and those deep holdings reflect the significant relationship that Thomas had with this institution and the people who worked here,” said Ho.

One of the paintings on exhibit at the DAM, “Light Blue Nursery,” was donated to SAAM in 1970 by Alma Thomas. 

“This was the first work by her to enter the collection,” said Ho. “It hung for some time in the office of the director, Joshua Taylor. Nine other paintings were either purchased or donated by other people during the artist's lifetime. Then, in the final year of her life, Thomas made arrangements to leave the bulk of her own collection to the museum after her death.”

Ho noted that the SAAM collection includes 29 works by Thomas, who lived in Washington, DC since age 16. Of the 26 paintings and three works on paper, seven were gifted by the artist during her lifetime and another 13 by bequest after her death. Nine works were purchased or given to SAAM by other donors. 

Ho recalled the first time she saw an entire rack of Thomas’ paintings in SAAM’s art storage. “It was stunning to see so many of her paintings, this huge array of colorful, dynamic works — especially since I knew that there were even more from our collection also on view in public spaces,” said the curator. Ho organized the show based on themes.

“I wanted to create groupings that would help viewers unfamiliar with her work better understand what inspired Thomas, the major themes that preoccupied her: space; nature; and music,” said Ho. Thomas’ paintings are compellingly abstract, and yet her titles provide keys that unlock her canvases. 

“Her paintings are immediately captivating, so colorful and full of movement. Looking at them feels restorative, like staring at a sunset or fall leaves, or watching the movement of waves coming to shore,” said Ho. “It’s fascinating to study the similarities and differences in how they are painted and her experimentation with color, brushstroke, and layering.”

In 1924, Thomas was the first student— not merely the first female— to earn a degree in fine art from Howard University. Ho provided an overview of Thomas’ career after retiring from teaching in the District of Columbia public schools for 38 years.

“She was first recognized in Washington, DC, her hometown, and by Howard University, the historically Black college in DC, of which she is an alum,” Ho said. “It was Howard's gallery that offered Thomas the 1966 solo show that precipitated a new direction in her painting— the innovation of her broken ‘stripes’ and her move toward acrylic paint and bright, high-keyed color.”

The artist gained notoriety in her 80s when prominent art institutions granted her solo shows. Asked about Thomas’ late career trajectory, Ho said, “The renowned Black artist, curator and scholar, David Driskell, deserves special credit for organizing a solo show of Thomas’ work at Fisk in 1971, which led to her 1972 solo show at the Whitney Museum in New York. 

At this time, there were intense protests by artists about the lack of Black inclusion in major art institutions in New York. When the Whitney decided to present a series of solo shows featuring African American artists, Driskell recommended Thomas. Having a solo show at the Whitney was unprecedented for a Black woman and garnered Thomas a new level of acclaim.”

The exhibit presents a delightful collection of Thomas’ radiant paintings, including a pair of early oil abstract works. Given Thomas’ personal history as a woman of color in a dark and ugly era as the U.S. struggled with the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War, her colorful paintings preserve the artist’s optimism and her devotion to beauty and peace. In the words of the artist, “Love comes from looking.”  

After closing at the DAM, the exhibition travels to the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester, NY.