When the Detroit Institute of Arts unveiled its newly reinstalled galleries dedicated to African American art last fall, the most significant change wasn’t just organizational, it was topographical. For decades, works by black artists were scattered throughout the museum or moved to quieter corners of the modern wing. Now, after a major reworking, these paintings lie at the heart of the institution, steps away from Diego Rivera’s massive industrial murals, the museum’s most visited landmark, and which figure prominently in the institution’s narrative of American culture.
The architect of this transformation is chief curator of African American art Valerie Mercer, who joined the museum in 2001 after formative years at the Studio Museum in Harlem with a mandate to transform a thinly represented area of the collection into a defining powerhouse. At the time, the museum housed only a few works by African-American artists, but Mercer approached the task with the pragmatism of a historian, methodically acquiring pieces that would allow the museum to tell a fuller, more accurate story of American art.
in “Reimagining African American Art,“The reinstallation traces a lineage that extends from nineteenth-century painters like Robert S. Duncanson—a key figure of his era who later slipped out of mainstream art history—to twentieth-century innovators like Sam Gilliam. The four exhibitions move through key cultural moments, including the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts Movement, while highlighting artists whose contributions are often marginalized in seminal surveys.
The importance of restructuring is not only to raise the level of deserving talent, but also to culminate a decades-long process of institutional recalibration. By moving African American art from the margins of the museum to its literal center, the DIA transformed Mercer’s curatorial project into a lasting structural commitment. The Observer recently sat down with her to discuss her role in the evolution of the museum’s collection, what she hoped to achieve with the reinstallation and the public response.
The DIA began adding works by African American artists to its historical collection in the 1940s. What can you tell me about the trajectory of the museum’s African American art collection, which now includes more than 700 works, and how it has evolved?
When I was hired, the specific goal was to create a center for African American art. The former director realized that the museum was not doing enough to engage Detroit’s large African-American community. At that time, African Americans were not attending, and the director thought that if the museum had someone who specialized in African American art, it would attract people. He was familiar with my work at the Studio Museum in Harlem, and I was brought in to help improve the collection. When I arrived, there were very few African American pieces in the museum’s collection, and my task was to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the collection and then begin acquiring works that filled those gaps. Over the years, I focused on acquiring artwork that told the story of African American art and its contributions to American art history, which I felt was the missing link.
How did you approach building the collection?
It was clear to me that there were significant gaps in the collection and that the history of African American artists had been largely overlooked. I have been steadily acquiring works over the years, with the goal of viewing African American art within the broader context of American art history. I wanted to draw attention to the contributions of these artists, which have often been erased from mainstream art history. It has been a rewarding process, and over the years, I have developed a collection that reflects the richness and depth of African American art. Specifically, the reinstallation aims to elevate these artists to a prominent place in the museum, where they can finally get the recognition they deserve.
Let’s talk about retraining and its importance. The newly reimagined galleries opened with “Reimagine African American Art,” showcasing works from the early 1800s through the 1980s, most notably Key art historical moments, including the Harlem Renaissance, Social Realism, Civil Rights Era art, and the Black Arts Movement. What goals guided your choices?
We make African American art more visible and showcase the rich history these artists have contributed to American art. Many of the artists featured in the exhibition have not been recognized, but their work is important to understanding the history of art in the United States. This exhibition gives visitors an opportunity to learn about these artists and appreciate their role in shaping American art. The exhibition is also a response to the historical erasure of African American art and artists, and provides a space for visitors to engage with their work in a meaningful way.
Are there specific artists front and center in the reinstallation process who you felt haven’t been particularly recognized?
everyone The artists in the exhibition deserve more recognition, but Robert Duncanson, in particular, stands out. He was one of the first African-American artists to gain national recognition during his time, but for many years, his work was overlooked and became, to some extent, unknown—disappeared or erased. I have been working to bring attention to his work and the legacy of artists like him.
There is also the example of Edmonia Lewis, an African American and Native American sculptor who was an important figure in 19th century sculpture and depicted Native Americans and African Americans when marble sculpture was traditionally associated with white figures dating back to antiquity. We have these beautiful busts that she made of Minnehaha and Hiawatha. She has an interesting story, as she was among the first African Americans, and also among the first Native Americans, to work in marble. Her own was often overshadowed by the works of her contemporaries, but she made significant contributions to American art. We have some of her work, and there is a retrospective of her work at the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts.
But most of the artists in this show are underappreciated, yet. Many of them were not really famous and even gained some recognition towards the end of their lives, unfortunately. We see this all the time. Recognition often comes too late. I knew some living artists when I was in New York working at the Studio Museum, because they all came to the museum. When I tour and talk about these artists, people are really amazed.
How has the reinstall been received by visitors?
The response was very positive. People have told me that they have been back several times since the galleries opened, specifically to “reimagine African American art,” and the galleries have gotten really good press. People learn a lot, which makes me feel really good, because that’s what I want. I want people to learn this history, because it is very important. The African American community here in Detroit has a very strong presence and a strong history, and this is part of that. There is a real interest in learning more about African American art. Sometimes, for example, before we had these exhibitions, people would ask, what were African American artists doing during slavery? The answer is, of course, that people like Duncanson have been able to get jobs under exceptional circumstances. Now we are able to show that artists like him and Henry Osawa Tanner were truly exceptional.
Did anything surprise you about the visitor’s initial response?
Collectors of African American art are familiar with the names of many of the artists in this exhibition, because they are in books, they are in surveys of African American art, and their works are sought after in those circles. We ran an early focus group of people who were not art historians but were familiar with the art. There is a piece of furniture in the galleries, a sofa, designed by Thomas Day, an African-American furniture maker from North Carolina who ran his own business and had employees. It was great. I showed the sofa to the focus group, and what surprised me was how they responded to it. They were talking about it in terms of its qualities as an object, and although they liked a lot of the artwork in the show, they… truly I loved this piece of furniture. They started talking about him almost as if he were a person. I’ve never encountered anything quite like this; They were just drawn to it.
I have to ask, do you have a favorite artwork in the exhibition?
I always get around this question by joking that I’m a Gemini, so it changes all the time. But honestly, as a curator, I can’t really have a favorite. If you ask me at 10 a.m., I’ll give you one answer, and by 3 p.m., the answer has changed, because I kind of fall in love with every piece. Art has always made me very happy, and I love getting to know artists. Additionally, as much as I love African American art, I see a lot of the arts as connected. People will say to me that you studied German art, so how do you now practice African American art? But I don’t treat it as anything different. A number of African American artists, like Vincent Smith, would talk to me about how their work drew on German Expressionism, and I could see that in his paintings. He was a Black Arts Movement artist who focused on the working class, the civil rights movement and struggle, and his work was very expressive and brilliant. Nowadays, many artists incorporate many cultures into their works. It’s interconnected.
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