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Alma Woodsey Thomas (September 22, 1891 – February 24, 1978) was an African-American artist and teacher who lived and worked in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...
, and is now recognized as a major American painter of the 20th century. Thomas is best known for the "exuberant", colorful, abstract paintings that she created after her retirement from a 35-year career teaching art at Washington's
Shaw Junior High School Shaw Junior High School, now known as Asbury Dwellings, is an historic structure located in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It has been listed on the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites and on the National Register of Histo ...
. Thomas, who is often considered a member of the Washington Color School
art movement An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a specific period of time, (usually a few months, years or decades) or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defin ...
but alternatively classified by some as an
Expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radi ...
, earned her teaching degree from University of the District of Columbia (known as Miner Normal School at the time) and was the first graduate of Howard University's Art department, and maintained connections to that university through her life. She achieved success as an African-American female artist despite the
segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of humans ...
and
prejudice Prejudice can be an affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classification of another person based on that person's perc ...
of her time. Thomas's reputation has continued to grow since her death. Her paintings are displayed in notable museums and collections, and they have been the subject of several books and solo museum exhibitions. In 2021, a museum sold Thomas's painting ''Alma's Flower Garden'' in a private transaction for $2.8 million.


Life and work


Childhood, education, and early teaching positions

Alma Thomas was born on September 22, 1891, in
Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it of ...
, as the oldest of four daughters, to John Harris Thomas, a businessman, and Amelia Cantey Thomas, a dress designer. Her mother and aunts, she later wrote, were teachers and Tuskegee Institute graduates. She was creative as a child, although her serious artistic career began much later in life. While growing up, Thomas displayed her artistic capabilities, and enjoyed making small pieces of artwork such as puppets, sculptures, and plates, mainly out of clay from the river behind her childhood home. Despite a growing interest in the arts, Thomas was "not allowed" to go into art museums as a child. She was provided with music lessons, as her mother played the violin. In 1907, when Thomas was 16, the family moved to the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C., to escape racial violence in
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
and to seek the benefits of the public school system of Washington. Her parents made this move despite that the family "kind of came down a bit," socially and economically, in leaving their upper-middle class life in Georgia. Describing the reason for the family move, she later wrote, "When I finished grade school in Columbus, there was nowhere that I could continue my education, so my parents decided to move the family to Washington." (Cited page numbers refer to the 36 pages of the online folder, rather than numbers on particular pages in the folder.) Other writers have pointed to the Atlanta race riots and racial massacre of 1906 as among the reasons her family left Georgia. As another example of the racial violence that her family faced in Georgia, Alma's father had an encounter with a lynch mob shortly before Alma was born, and her family attributed her poor hearing to the fright from that incident. Although still segregated, the nation's capital was known to offer more opportunities for African-Americans than most other cities. As she wrote in the 1970s, "At least Washington's libraries were open to Negroes, whereas Columbus excluded Negroes from its only library." In Washington, Thomas attended Armstrong Technical High School, where she took her first art classes. About them, she said "When I entered the art room, it was like entering heaven. . . . The Armstrong High School laid the foundation for my life." In high school, she excelled at math and science, and architecture specifically interested her. A miniature schoolhouse that she made from cardboard using techniques learned in her architecture studies at Armstrong was exhibited at the Smithsonian in 1912. Although she expressed an interest in becoming an
architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
, it was unusual for women to work in this profession and this limited her prospects. After graduating from high school in 1911, she studied kindergarten education at
Miner Normal School Normal School for Colored Girls (now known as University of the District of Columbia) established in Washington, D.C., in 1851 as an institution of learning and training for young African-American women, especially to train teachers. As Miner Nor ...
(now known as University of the District of Columbia), earning her teaching credentials in 1913. In 1914, she obtained a teaching position in the Princess Anne schools on the
Eastern Shore of Maryland The Eastern Shore of Maryland is a part of the U.S. state of Maryland that lies mostly on the east side of the Chesapeake Bay. Nine counties are normally included in the region. The Eastern Shore is part of the larger Delmarva Peninsula tha ...
, where she taught for four months. In 1915, she started teaching kindergarten at the Thomas Garrett Settlement House in Wilmington, Delaware, staying there until 1921. Thomas entered Howard University in 1921, at age 30, entering as a junior because of her previous teacher training. She started as a home economics student, planning to specialize in costume design, only to switch to
fine art In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork. ...
after studying under art department founder James V. Herring. Her artistic focus at Howard was on sculpture; the paintings she produced during her college education were described by Romare Bearden and Henry Henderson as "academic and undistinguished." She earned her Bachelors of Science in Fine Arts in 1924 from Howard, becoming the first graduate from the university's fine arts program, and also "possibly the first African-American woman" to earn a bachelor's degree in art—or the first American woman of any racial background, as the artist
Keith Anthony Morrison Keith Anthony Morrison, Commander of Distinction (C.D.), born May 20, 1942),"Resume"
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wrote that "it was said n 1924that she was the first woman in America ever to gain a bachelor’s degree in art."


Post-college career

In 1924, Thomas began teaching art at
Shaw Junior High School Shaw Junior High School, now known as Asbury Dwellings, is an historic structure located in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It has been listed on the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites and on the National Register of Histo ...
, a Black school in the then-segregated public schools of Washington, D.C., where she worked until her retirement in 1960; she wrote, "I was there for thirty-five years and occupied the same classroom."The number in this sentence is typed as "thirty-eight," but in one of the three copies, the "eight" is corrected by hand to "five." She taught alongside fellow artist Malkia Roberts. While at Shaw Junior High, she started a community arts program that encouraged student appreciation of fine art. The program supported marionette performances and the distribution of student designed holiday cards which were given to soldiers at the
Tuskegee Veterans Administration Medical Center The Tuskegee Veterans Administration Medical Center began in 1923 as an old soldiers' home in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was originally called the Tuskegee Home, part of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers system. The home-hospital, e ...
. Also, according to her reminiscences, "At Shaw, I organized the first art gallery in the D.C. public schools in 1938, securing paintings by outstanding Negro artists from the Howard Gallery of Art." The three and a half decades of Thomas's teaching career, from 1924 to 1960, were described by Thurlow Tibbs, the D.C. African-American art dealer (and grandson of Thomas's friend Lillian Evans, the opera singer) as Thomas's "fermenting period;" during them she absorbed many ideas and influences, and after 1960 from those ideas and influences she would create her own distinctive art. While she taught at Shaw Junior High, Thomas continued to pursue her art, her formal and informal education, and activities with the Washington, D.C. art community, the latter often in ways connected to Howard University. During this time Thomas painted, especially in watercolor; while her style in the 1930s was described as still "quite traditional" and naturalistic, she has been called a "brilliant watercolorist." Over summers, she would travel to New York City to visit art museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and galleries. During the summers of 1930 through 1934, she attended Teachers College of Columbia University, earning her Masters in
Art Education Visual arts education is the area of learning that is based upon the kind of art that one can see, visual arts—drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, and design in jewelry, pottery, weaving, fabrics, etc. and design applied to more practi ...
in 1934; her studies focused on sculpture, and she wrote her thesis on the use of marionettes. In the summer of 1935, she further studied marionettes in New York City with the German-American puppeteer Tony Sarg, known as the father of modern puppetry in America. In 1936, she founded an organization, called the School Arts League Project, to bring art opportunities to children. In 1943, Thomas helped James W. Herring, her former professor at Howard, and Alonzo J. Aden found the Barnett-Aden Gallery, the first successful Black-owned private art gallery in the United States. She served as the gallery's vice president. Thomas's association with the Barnett-Aden Gallery has been described as "critical to" and, according to curator Adelyn Dohme Breeskin, the "pivotal" development in, her development as a professional artist." It put her into contact with leading contemporary national artists, which "heightened her awareness of art trends and directions," and it provided exposure to local artists which "both challenged and inspired her." In the 1940s Thomas also joined
Lois Mailou Jones Lois Mailou Jones (1905-1998) was an artist and Teacher, educator. Her work can be found in the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Museum of Women in the Ar ...
's artist community, "The Little Paris Group (or "Little Paris Studio," or "Little Paris Studio group"). This group of Black Washington artists was founded by Jones and Céline Marie Tabary, both artists and members of the Howard University art faculty (Jones from 1930 to 1977, and Tabary beginning in 1945). The date of the group's founding is described variously as during the German occupation of Paris (i.e., 1940 to 1944), "the late 1940s," 1945, 1946, or 1948. It met either weekly or twice per week, at Jones' studio, the "Little Paris studio," in her home at 1220 Quincy Street NE, in Washington's Brookland neighborhood. It existed for five years. It offered developing artists an opportunity to paint from the model, to improve their techniques -- "developing skills and styles," and "to hone their skills and exchange critiques"—as well as a salon, or discussion forum—to "talk about the latest developments in modern art, particularly as it was centered in Paris." Other members of the group in addition to Jones and Tabary included
Delilah Pierce Delilah Williams Pierce (March 3, 1904 – 1992) was an African American artist, curator and educator based in Washington, District of Columbia. Pierce is best known for abstract paintings depicting the natural world. Her work also includes portra ...
and Thomas, as well as Bruce Brown, Ruth Brown, Richard Dempsey, Barbara Linger, Don Roberts, Desdemona Wade, Frank West, and Elizabeth Williamson. A photo, from Thomas's archives, of a 1948 gathering of the group shows thirteen artists and a male model. In 1958, Thomas visited art centers in Western Europe with
Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called ...
students in an extensive tour arranged by that university's Tyler School of Art. Her involvement with the Little Paris Group is said to have inspired Thomas to seek further academic training at
American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was chart ...
. One source states that in the early 1950s, "the A.U. art department was regarded in many quarters as 'the' avant-garde art department in the nation." Accordingly, in 1950, at the age of 59, she began a decade of studies at that university, taking night and weekend classes, studying
Art History Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today, ...
and painting. At American University she studied painting with Robert Franklin Gates and Ben "Joe" Summerford. But
Jacob Kainen Jacob Kainen (December 7, 1909 – March 19, 2001) was an American painter and printmaker. He is also known as an art historian, writing books on John Baptist Jackson (US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1962) and the etchings of C ...
was her most influential teacher there, and would become a close friend for the rest of her lifetime. When Tomas studied with Kainin in fall 1957, he considered her as a fellow artist rather than as a student. Kainen had met Thomas in 1934, at the Barnet-Aden Gallery, and in 1957, he agreed to take over teaching an intensive year-long A.U. class for six selected top painting students, including Thomas, but the administration allowed 32 students, many of them beginners, to take the class and Kainen quit in frustration after one term. When Thomas began her advanced studies at American University in 1950, she was still a figurative painter. During the 1950s her style evolved in several major shifts, from figurative painting to cubism and then to abstract expressionism, with "monumental," dark paintings largely in blue and brown tones, to beginning to embrace the bright colors that she would later use in her signature style.


Artistic career

"''Creative art is for all time and is therefore independent of time. It is of all ages, of every land, and if by this we mean the creative spirit in man which produces a picture or a statue is common to the whole civilized world, independent of age, race and nationality; the statement may stand unchallenged.''"
-Alma Thomas, 1970Patton, 220.
Thomas would not become a full-time, professional artist until she was 68 or 69 years old, in 1960, when she retired from teaching. Within twelve years after her first class at American, she began creating Color Field paintings, inspired by the work of the New York School and
Abstract Expressionism Abstract expressionism is a post–World War II art movement in American painting, developed in New York City in the 1940s. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve international influence and put New York at the center of the ...
. Thomas was known to work in her home studio (a small living room), creating her paintings by "propping the canvas on her lap and balancing it against the sofa." She worked out of the kitchen in her house, creating works like ''Watusi (Hard Edge)'' (1963), a manipulation of the
Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known primar ...
cutout ''The Snail'', in which Thomas shifted shapes around and changed the colors that Matisse used, and named it after a
Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midni ...
song. In contrast with most other members of the Washington Color School, she did not use masking tape to outline the shapes in her paintings. Her technique involved drawing faint pencil lines across the canvas to create shapes and patterns, and filling in the canvas with paint afterwards. Her pencil lines are obvious in many of her finished pieces, as Thomas did not erase them. Thomas's post-retirement artwork had a notable focus on color theory. Her work at the time resonated with that of
Vasily Kandinsky Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky (; rus, Василий Васильевич Кандинский, Vasiliy Vasilyevich Kandinskiy, vɐˈsʲilʲɪj vɐˈsʲilʲjɪvʲɪtɕ kɐnʲˈdʲinskʲɪj;  – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter a ...
(who was interested in the emotional capabilities of color) and of the Washington Color Field Painters, "something that endeared her to critics . . . but also raised questions about her 'blackness' at a time when younger African-American artists were producing works of racial protest." She stated, "The use of color in my paintings is of paramount importance to me. Through color I have sought to concentrate on beauty and happiness in my painting rather than on man's inhumanity to man." Speaking again about her use of color she said: "Color is life, and light is the mother of color." In 1963, she walked in the
March on Washington The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, also known as simply the March on Washington or The Great March on Washington, was held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963. The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic righ ...
with her friend, the opera singer Lillian Evans. Although Thomas was largely an apolitical artist, she portrayed the 1963 event in a 1964 painting. A detail from that painting became a 2005 U.S. postage stamp commemorating the March on Washington. Her first retrospective exhibit was in 1966 (April 24–May 17) at the Gallery of Art at Howard University, curated by art historian James A. Porter. It included 34 works from 1959 to 1966. For this exhibition, she created ''Earth Paintings'', a series of nature-inspired abstract works, including ''Resurrection'' (1966), which in 2014 would be bought for the White House collection. Thomas and the artist
Delilah Pierce Delilah Williams Pierce (March 3, 1904 – 1992) was an African American artist, curator and educator based in Washington, District of Columbia. Pierce is best known for abstract paintings depicting the natural world. Her work also includes portra ...
, a friend, would drive into the countryside where Thomas would seek inspiration, pulling ideas from the effects of light and atmosphere on rural environments. To meet the challenge posed by the Howard show, according to Romare Bearden and Henry Henderson, her style changed again, in a crucial way: "Thomas evolved the specific style now recognized as her signature - playing color against color and over color with small, irregular rectangular shapes of dense, often intense color." This exhibition received a supportive review from Helen Hoffman in The Washington Post of May 4, 1966, titled "colorful abstract reflects her spirit". Inspired by the moon landing in 1969, Alma Thomas began her second major theme of paintings. The series ''Space, Snoopy'' and ''Earth'' were applying pointillism. She evoked mood by dramatic contrast of color with mosaic style, using dark blue against pale pink and orange colors, depicting an abstraction and accidental beauty through the use of color. Most of the works in these series have circular, horizontal and vertical patterns. These patterns are able to generate a conceptual feeling of floating. The patterns also generate energy within the canvas. The contrast of colors creates a powerful color segregation, and maintain visual energy. In 1972, at the age of 81, Thomas was the first African-American woman to have a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, and later the same year a much larger exhibition was also held at the
Corcoran Gallery of Art The Corcoran Gallery of Art was an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, that is now the location of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, a part of the George Washington University. Overview The Corcoran School of the Arts & Desig ...
. Thomas denied labels placed upon her as an artist and would not accept any barriers inhibiting her creative process and art career, including her identity as a black woman. She believed that the most important thing was for her to continue to create her visions through her own artwork and work in the art world despite racial segregation. Despite this, Thomas was still discriminated against as a black female artist and was critiqued for her abstract style as opposed to other Black Americans who worked with figuration and symbolism to fight oppression. Her works were featured alongside many other African-American artists in galleries and shows, such as the first Black-owned gallery in the District of Columbia. After her show at the Whitney, Thomas's fame within the fine arts community immediately skyrocketed. Her newfound recognition was due in part to Robert Doty's vocal support of her, as he organized Thomas's Whitney show as part of a series of African-American artist exhibitions, intended to protest their lack of representation. New York critics were impressed with Thomas's modern style, especially given the fact that she was a nearly 80-year-old woman at the time of her national debut. The New York Times reviewed her exhibit four times, calling her paintings "expert abstractions, tachiste in style, faultless in their handling of color." Many white critics complimented her as “the Signac of current color painters” and as “gifted, ebullient abstractionist”. Alma Thomas's philosophy of her own art is that her works are full of energy, and those energies cannot be destroyed or created. New York art curator and editor
Thomas B. Hess Thomas B. Hess (1920, Rye, New York – July 13, 1978) was an American art editor and curator, perhaps best known for his over twenty years at the helm of ARTnews and his championing, mounting exhibitions of the works of, and writing on the arti ...
bought Thomas's 1972 painting ''Red Roses Sonata'', and in 1976 his family's foundation gave the piece to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Joshua Taylor, director from 1970 to 1981 of the National Collection of Fine Arts (now the Smithsonian American Art Museum), also purchased some of her work, and wrote to Thomas in 1975, thanking her for a painting that hung in his living room: "It's like having Spring well before its appointed date."
Mary Beth Edelson Mary Beth Edelson (born Mary Elizabeth Johnson) (6 February 1933 - 20 April 2021) was an American artist and pioneer of the feminist art movement, deemed one of the notable "first-generation feminist artists." Edelson was a printmaker, book ar ...
's ''Some Living American Women Artists / Last Supper'' (1972) appropriated Leonardo da Vinci’s ''The Last Supper'', with the heads of notable women artists collaged over the heads of Christ and his apostles; Alma Thomas was among those notable women artists. This image, addressing the role of religious and art historical iconography in the subordination of women, became "one of the most iconic images of the
feminist art movement The feminist art movement refers to the efforts and accomplishments of feminists internationally to produce art that reflects women's lives and experiences, as well as to change the foundation for the production and perception of contemporary ar ...
."


Personal life

Thomas was, according to all evidence, never married. She told the ''New York Times'' in 1977 that she had "never married a man but my art. What man would have ever appreciated what I was up to?" She wrote, "Once upon a time it was said, don't die having a " Miss" on your tombstone. I feel very proud of having maintain dmy Miss. I say that Miss stand for all the Jackasses I missed in life." She added, "A fine man is a delight, but for God sake don't get entangled with a Jackass." She had an active social life, with many artist friends. She reportedly "rarely missed" a museum or gallery opening in Washington. Thomas lived in the same family house in Washington, at 1530 15th Street, NW, for nearly her entire life, from 1907 when her family moved from Georgia so she could attend high school until her death in 1978 (aside from a few years in her 20s when she worked elsewhere). Her younger sister John Maurice Thomas, who was named for their father and had a career as a librarian at Howard University, shared the house with her.) That home, now known as the Alma Thomas House, was built in about 1875 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.


Death and archives

Alma Thomas died on February 24, 1978, in Howard University Hospital, following aortal surgery. Thomas' papers were donated in several periods between 1979 and 2004 to the
Archives of American Art The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 20 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washing ...
by J. Maurice Thomas, Alma Thomas' sister.


Artistic style

Alma Thomas' early work was representational in manner. As a black woman, she focused her work on creative spirit rather than race or gender. Thomas believed that creativity should be independent of gender or race, creating works with a focus on accidental beauty and the abstraction of color. After further education at American University and influenced by James V. Herring and
Lois Mailou Jones Lois Mailou Jones (1905-1998) was an artist and Teacher, educator. Her work can be found in the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Museum of Women in the Ar ...
, her work became more abstract. Toward the end of her life, her style moved "to a color-filled,
impasto ''Impasto'' is a technique used in painting, where paint is laid on an area of the surface thickly, usually thick enough that the brush or painting-knife strokes are visible. Paint can also be mixed right on the canvas. When dry, impasto provide ...
ed geometric abstraction of tessellated brushstroke patterns." These paintings have been compared to
Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
mosaics and the pointillist paintings of
Georges-Pierre Seurat Georges Pierre Seurat ( , , ; 2 December 1859 – 29 March 1891) was a French post-Impressionist artist. He devised the painting techniques known as chromoluminarism and pointillism and used conté crayon for drawings on paper with a rough sur ...
. Thomas' style has qualities similar to West African paintings as well as Byzantine mosaics. Her
watercolor Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to t ...
and oil paintings incorporated the use of (sometimes overlapping) colorful rectangles. She continued to use this technique, in works which explored colors found in trees, flowers, gardens, and other natural imagery. Her painting ''Evening Glow'' was inspired in part by Thomas's interest in the colors of natural world: "The holly tree outside her living room intrigued Thomas with designs formed by its leaves against the window panes, and with patterns of light and shade cast on the floor and walls inside her home." She called her paintings 'Alma's Stripes,' as the overlapping shapes of paint created elongated rectangles. Later works were inspired by space exploration and the cosmos. The title of her 1972 painting, 'Mars Dust,' alluded to news stories of a dust storm on Mars..


Later reactions, exhibits, and developments

Art historian Richard J. Powell wrote in 1997 about the position of Thomas and
Sam Gilliam Sam Gilliam ( ; November 30, 1933 – June 25, 2022) was an American color field painter and lyrical abstractionist artist. Gilliam was associated with the Washington Color School, a group of Washington, D.C.-area artists that developed a form ...
as the two best known African-American members of the Washington Color School, "While conversant with the works of fellow Washington Color School artists ( Gene Davis,
Morris Louis Morris Louis Bernstein (November 28, 1912 – September 7, 1962), known professionally as Morris Louis, was an American painter. During the 1950s he became one of the earliest exponents of Color Field painting. While living in Washington, D. ...
, and
Kenneth Noland Kenneth Noland (April 10, 1924 – January 5, 2010) was an American painter. He was one of the best-known American color field painters, although in the 1950s he was thought of as an abstract expressionist and in the early 1960s he was though ...
), they also addressed, through rhythmic and high key color abstract painting techniques, the social aspirations of Washington D.C.'s African American middle class." He continued by noting that in the 1960s Thomas "turned her back" on her earlier representational style "that would have been seen by D.C.'s arts community as ideologically conservative," in favor of "an abstract style inspired by horticulture, scientific color theory, and music." Powell described Thomas's 1976 ''Azeleas Singing and Dancing Rock and Roll Music'' as "skillfully negotiating the slippery pathways between nature and society," and "epitomize ngthe integrationist mood of the times." The Washington Post described her as "a force in the Washington Color School". Writing in 1998, art historian
Sharon Patton Sharon F. Patton (born 1944) is an American historian who specializes in African art. Early life and education She was born in southern part of Chicago in 1944, where she received her bachelor's degree in 1966 from Roosevelt University. Patton a ...
described Thomas's 1973 ''Wind and Crepe Myrtle Concerto'' as "one of the most
Minimalist In visual arts, music and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in post–World War II in Western art, most strongly with American visual arts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Prominent artists associated with minimalism include Don ...
Color-Field paintings ever produced by an African-American artist." Although Thomas did not receive a monograph until 1998 when the Fort Wayne Museum exhibited a retrospective on the artist, the lateness of in-depth scholarly attention is not representative of her legacy and influence on the realm of
Visual Arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts a ...
.
Jacob Kainen Jacob Kainen (December 7, 1909 – March 19, 2001) was an American painter and printmaker. He is also known as an art historian, writing books on John Baptist Jackson (US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1962) and the etchings of C ...
, her teacher at American University in autumn 1957, asserts that "Thomas played a key role in the development of abstract painting throughout the mid 20th century." Kainen wrote in the catalog of the Fort Wayne show that he met Thomas in 1943, at an event at the Barnett-Aden Gallery. Kainen remembers her at that time as "a small, slim woman whose elegance of dress and manner and unmistakable firmness of character made the matter of her size irrelevant." In the program of the 1966 Howard University Art Gallery's show "Alma W. Thomas: A Retrospective Exhibition, 1959-1966," Kainen is quoted as describing her as "the Signac of current color painters." In 2009, two paintings by Thomas, including ''Watusi (Hard Edge)'', were chosen by First Lady Michelle Obama, White House interior designer
Michael S. Smith (interior designer) Michael Sean Smith (born 1963) is an American interior designer based in Los Angeles. Smith was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Committee for the Preservation of the White House from 2008-2016 and is responsible for the 2010 makeover of ...
, and White House
curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...
William Allman to be exhibited in the White House during the Obama presidency. ''Watusi (Hard Edge)'' was eventually removed from the White House due to concerns about the piece fitting into the space in Michelle Obama's
East Wing The East Wing of the White House is a two-story structure that serves as office space for the First Lady and her staff, including the White House social secretary, White House Graphics and Calligraphy Office and correspondence staff. The East Wi ...
office. ''Sky Light'', on loan from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, hung in the Obama family private quarters. In 2015, another of her paintings, ''Resurrection'' (1966), was prominently hung in the Old Family Dining Room of the White House, having been acquired for the White House collection in 2014 with $290,000 in funding from the White House Historical Association. It was "the first artwork by an African-American woman to hang in the public spaces of the White House and enter the permanent collection." The choice of Thomas for the White House collection was described as an ideal symbol for the Obama administration by '' The New York Times''
art critic An art critic is a person who is specialized in analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating art. Their written critiques or reviews contribute to art criticism and they are published in newspapers, magazines, books, exhibition brochures, and catalogue ...
Holland Cotter. Cotter described Thomas' work as "forward-looking without being radical; post-racial but also race-conscious." In 2016, the exhibition ''Alma Thomas'', described in promotional materials as "the first comprehensive look at the artist’s work in nearly twenty years," and as presenting "a wide range of evolution of Thomas's work from the late 1950s to her death in 1978," was organized by The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College and
The Studio Museum in Harlem The Studio Museum in Harlem is an American art museum devoted to the work of artists of African descent. The museum's galleries are currently closed in preparation for a building project that will replace the current building, located at 144 W ...
. This exhibition was curated by Ian Berry, Dayton Director of the Tang Museum and Lauren Haynes, Associate Curator, Permanent Collection at the
Studio Museum in Harlem The Studio Museum in Harlem is an American art museum devoted to the work of artists of African descent. The museum's galleries are currently closed in preparation for a building project that will replace the current building, located at 144 ...
and supported by the Friends of the Tang. The exhibit's promotional material noted that "Thomas's patterned compositions, energetic brushwork and commitment to color created a singular and innovative body of work." They also noted that it "includes rarely exhibited watercolors and early experiments." This exhibition was divided into four sections: Move to Abstraction; Earth, Space, and Late Work. '' The Wall Street Journal'' described her in 2016 as a previously "underappreciated artist" who is more recently recognized for her "exuberant" works, noteworthy for their pattern, rhythm and color. In 2019, Thomas's 1970 painting ''A Fantastic Sunset'' was auctioned at a
Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
sale. It sold for $2.655 million. In 2021, a new record price was set for Thomas's work when ''Alma's Flower Garden'', painted in approximately 1968 to 1970, was deaccessioned by the
Greenville County Museum of Art The Greenville County Museum of Art (GCMA) is an art museum located in Greenville, South Carolina. Its collections focus mainly on American art, and its holdings include works by Andrew Wyeth, Josef Albers, Jasper Johns (raised in South Carolina), ...
, which sold it in a private sale to an unidentified purchaser for $2.8 million. The museum had bought the painting in 2008 for $135,000. An exhibition of her art entitled "Alma W. Thomas: Everything is Beautiful," co-organized by the
Chrysler Museum of Art The Chrysler Museum of Art is an art museum on the border between downtown and the Ghent district of Norfolk, Virginia. The museum was founded in 1933 as the Norfolk Museum of Arts and Sciences. In 1971, automotive heir, Walter P. Chrysler Jr. ...
in Norfolk, Virginia and the
Columbus Museum The Columbus Museum in Columbus, Georgia was founded in 1953. It contains many artifacts on both American art and regional history, displayed in both its permanent collection as well as temporary exhibitions.Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it of ...
, opened on July 9, 2021, at the Chrysler Museum. It is scheduled to run there to October 3, 2021, following which it will run at the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., in fall 2021, the Frist Art Museum in Nashville in spring 2022, and the Columbus Museum in summer 2022. In collaboration with the exhibition, a short documentary, "Miss Alma Thomas: A Life in Color" was commissioned. The film, directed by
Cheri Gaulke Cheri Gaulke (born 1954) is a visual artist most known for her role in the Feminist Art Movement in southern California in the 1970s and her work on gay and lesbian families. Biography Gaulke holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Minneapolis ...
, and produced by Jon Gann has played over 40 film festivals worldwide, and has won awards and accolades.


Notable exhibitions

* ''Watercolors by Alma Thomas'', 1960, Dupont Theatre Art Gallery * ''Alma Thomas: A Retrospective Exhibition (1959-1966)'', 1966, Howard University Gallery of Art * ''Alma Thomas: Recent Paintings'', 1968, Franz Bader Gallery * ''Recent Paintings by Alma W. Thomas: Earth and Space Series (1961–1971)'', 1971, Carl Van Vechten Gallery, Fisk University * ''Alma W. Thomas'', 1972, Whitney Museum of American Art * ''Alma W. Thomas: Retrospective Exhibition'', 1972,
Corcoran Gallery of Art The Corcoran Gallery of Art was an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, that is now the location of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, a part of the George Washington University. Overview The Corcoran School of the Arts & Desig ...
* ''Alma W. Thomas: Paintings'', 1973,
Martha Jackson Gallery Martha Jackson (; January 17, 1907 – July 4, 1969) was an American art dealer, gallery owner, and collector. Her New York City based Martha Jackson Gallery, founded in 1953, was groundbreaking in its representation of women and internatio ...
* ''Alma W. Thomas: Recent Paintings'', 1975, Howard University Gallery of Art * ''Alma W. Thomas: Recent Paintings'', 1976, H.C. Taylor Art Gallery,
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (also known as North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina A&T, N.C. A&T, or simply A&T) is a public, historically black land-grant research university in Greensboro, North Carol ...
* ''A Life in Art: Alma Thomas, 1891-1978'', 1981,
National Museum of American Art The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...
, Smithsonian Institution * ''Alma W. Thomas: A Retrospective of the Paintings'', 1998, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Tampa Museum of Art,
New Jersey State Museum The New Jersey State Museum is located at 195-205 West State Street in Trenton, New Jersey. It serves a broad region between New York City and Philadelphia. The museum's collections include natural history specimens, archaeological and ethnograph ...
,
Anacostia Community Museum The Anacostia Community Museum (known colloquially as the ACM) is a community museum in the Anacostia neighborhood of Washington, D.C., in the United States. It is one of twenty museums under the umbrella of the Smithsonian Institution and was the ...
, Smithsonian Institution, and The Columbus Museum * ''Alma Thomas: Phantasmagoria, Major Paintings from the 1970s'', 2001, Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, and Women's Museum: An Institution for the Future * ''A Proud Continuum: Eight Decades of Art at Howard University'', 2005, Howard University * ''Color Balance: Paintings by Felrath Hines and Alma Thomas'', 2010,
Nasher Museum of Art The Nasher Museum of Art (previously the Duke University Museum of Art) is the art museum of Duke University, and is located on Duke's campus in Durham, North Carolina, United States. The Nasher, along with Dartmouth's Hood Museum of Art and Pr ...
* ''Alma Thomas'', 2016, The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College, and
The Studio Museum in Harlem The Studio Museum in Harlem is an American art museum devoted to the work of artists of African descent. The museum's galleries are currently closed in preparation for a building project that will replace the current building, located at 144 W ...
* ''Alma Thomas: Resurrection Exhibition'', 2019, Mnuchin Gallery * ''Alma W. Thomas: Everything is Beautiful'', 2021, Chrysler Museum of Art


Notable works in public collections

* ''Watusi (Hard Edge)'' (1963), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution,
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...
*''Air View of a Spring Nursery'' (1966),
Columbus Museum The Columbus Museum in Columbus, Georgia was founded in 1953. It contains many artifacts on both American art and regional history, displayed in both its permanent collection as well as temporary exhibitions.Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
*''Breeze Rustling Through Fall Flowers'' (1968), Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. *''Nature's Red Impressions'' (1968), Luther W. Brady Art Gallery, George Washington University, Washington, D.C. * ''Resurrection'' (1968), White House Historical Association, Washington, D.C. * ''Wind, Sunshine and Flowers'' (1968),
Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 1.5 million objects. Located near the Prospect Heights, Crown ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...
*''Iris, Tulips, Jonquils and Crocuses'' (1969),
National Museum of Women in the Arts The National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), located in Washington, D.C., is "the first museum in the world solely dedicated" to championing women through the arts. NMWA was incorporated in 1981 by Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay. Since openi ...
, Washington, D.C. * ''Pansies in Washington'' (1969), National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. * ''Lunar Surface'' (1970),
American University Museum The American University Museum is located within the Katzen Arts Center at the American University in Washington, DC. History and description The American University Museum consists of a three-story, museum and sculpture garden. The region’ ...
, Washington, D.C. * ''Snoopy Early Sun Display'' (1970), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. *''Earth Sermon - Beauty, Love and Peace'' (1971), Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. *''Evening Glow'' (1972),
Baltimore Museum of Art The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, is an art museum that was founded in 1914. The BMA's collection of 95,000 objects encompasses more than 1,000 works by Henri Matisse anchored by the Cone Collection of ...
*''Mars Dust'' (1972),
Whitney Museum The Whitney Museum of American Art, known informally as "The Whitney", is an art museum in the Meatpacking District and West Village neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1930 by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875–1942 ...
, New York * ''Red Atmosphere'' (1972),
Tougaloo College Tougaloo College is a private historically black college in the Tougaloo area of Jackson, Mississippi. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It was originally established in 1869 by New Yor ...
, Jackson, Mississippi * ''Red Roses Sonata'' (1972), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York * ''Starry Night and the Astronauts'' (1972),
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mil ...
*''Fiery Sunset'' (1973),
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of th ...
, New York * ''Spring Embraces Yellow'' (1973),
University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art The University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art is a visual arts institution that is part of the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. Since its inception, the museum has partne ...
, Iowa City * ''Wind and Crêpe Myrtle Concerto'' (1973), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. * ''Wind Sparkling Dew and Green Grass'' (1973),
Fort Wayne Museum of Art The Fort Wayne Museum of Art (FWMoA) is an American art museum located in downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana, Allen County, United States. The Fort Wayne Museum of Art contains permanent collections and national traveling exhibitions and is accredit ...
, Indiana *''Hydrangeas Spring Song'' (1976), Philadelphia Museum of Art *''Red Azaleas Singing and Dancing Rock and Roll Music'' (1976), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. * ''White Roses Sing and Sing'' (1976), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. * ''Untitled: Music Series'' (1978), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.


Memorials

Alma Thomas Teen Space at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library was named after her.


Notes


References


Bibliography

* Patton, Sharon F. ''African-American Art.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press (1998). * "Alma Thomas papers, 1894-2000".
Finding Aid.
' Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.


Further reading

* * * * * ''Alma W. Thomas: A Retrospective of the Paintings''. Fort Wayne: Fort Wayne Museum of Art (1998). * Merry A. Foresta, ''A Life in Art: Alma Thomas, 1891-1978''. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of American Art (1981). * Foresta, Merry A. ''A Life in Art: Alma Thomas, 1891-1978''. Published for the National Museum of American Art by the Smithsonian Institution Press, 1981. * ''Alma Thomas''. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art (1972).


External links


Alma Thomas's work at the SmithsonianAlma Thomas, Skidmore University
at the National Gallery of Art
Swann Galleries, "Alma Thomas’s Journey to Abstraction" (Sep. 27, 2017) - five examples of paintings showing the evolution of her abstract style from the 1950s to the 1970s"Miss Alma Thomas: A Life in Color" short documentary (2021)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Alma 1891 births 1978 deaths Abstract expressionist artists People from Columbus, Georgia Artists from Washington, D.C. Howard University alumni Teachers College, Columbia University alumni Artists from Georgia (U.S. state) 20th-century American women artists American women painters African-American painters African-American women artists 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American artists