Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires

Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires is an exhibition of new collages and montages by Mickalene Thomas at the Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans. Spanning new painting, film, and photography, the works include references to pop culture and the long history of Western and African Art—from Edouard Manet’s odalisque figures to the mise-en-scene studio portraiture of James Van Der Zee and Malick Sidibé. Thomas’s ability to detect and to hold contradictions translates into powerful, self-possessed depictions of Black women that confront and subvert stereotypes. In dialogue with collages and montages by artists, notably including Pablo Picasso, Hannah Höch, Romare Bearden, and Wangechi Mutu, Thomas’s work uses juxtaposition and arrangement to explore cross-cultural and hybrid social and personal histories.

The exhibition opens November 2 and remains on view until June 14, 2020. cacno.org.