Something to Look Forward To

February 5, 2006 – April 2, 2006

Organized by the The Phillips Museum of Art
Franklin & Marshall College , Lancaster , Pennsylvania

“Something to Look Forward To” paid homage to the exceptional talent, unique vision, and courageous persistence of particular mature artists who have created dynamic abstract images and objects during extended and successful careers. Twenty-two celebrated African American artists over the age of sixty were each invited to exhibit two works, created six to 10 years apart. The submissions cover several forms of abstract art, including multimedia, painting, sculpture and furniture. The exhibition opened March 2004 at Franklin & Marshall College in the Dana and Rothman galleries of the college’s Phillips Museum of Art.

This visual stunning, groundbreaking show was curated by Bill Hutson, the college’s Cook Distinguished Artist-in-Residence. The exhibit features works by Betty Blayton, Frank Bowling, Yvonne Pickering Carter, Edward Clark, Melvin Edwards, Sam Gilliam, David Hammons, Gerald Jackson, Lawrence Compton Kolawole, Alvin Loving, Richard Mayhew, Sam Middleton, Mary Lovelace O’Neal, Joe Overstreet, Howardena Pindell, Helen Evans Ramsaran, John T. Scott, Sylvia Snowden, the late Mildred Thompson, Jack Whitten, William T. Williams, and Frank Wimberley.

The exhibition, featuring works ranging from paintings to sculptures, was also a tribute to the older artist, according to Hutson. “Like aging athletes, older contemporary artists are expected to ‘throw in the towel’,” he said. “But creative visual artists do not retire. As we advance into a new millennium, more individuals are living longer, staying active, and enjoying a better quality of life than human beings realized during previous centuries. To honor the endurance of mature artists, the building blocks used in the architecture of this exhibition include style, identity and age.”

“Something to Look Forward To” was sponsored in part by the KSU Foundation; Kansas State University ‘s Office of the Provost, Office of the Vice President for Institutional Advancement, and Diversity and Dual Career Development; the Kansas Art Commission, a state agency; and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.