Pigment International™ receives Field Foundation grant for production of its premier magazine
Black Fine Art Month line up expands with addition of Michelle Duster, great, great granddaughter of Ida B Wells
Pigment International™ has been selected as a Field Foundation grant recipient for its Pigment Magazine under its programmatic area of media and storytelling. The organization will receive $35K in funding to cover the cost of editors, writers and graphic designers for the publication. Launched in 2018, the publication is a glossy, oversized magazine that highlights the stories of Black artists, collectors, curators and others in the Black art ecosystem.
Stories in the publication cover Black art across the country and the magazine’s striking cover design has featured works by Chicago artist James Nelson and international artist Deborah Roberts. In 2019 the magazine’s cover was a finalist for the prestigious Ozzy Award. In 2020, the magazine content was centered on the racial turmoil sparked by the murder of George Floyd. Pigment International surveyed artists across the country on what they were feeling, how they were coping, and most importantly what they were creating in the wake of the racial reckoning. The issue featured murals by Black creators across the country as well as stories about established and emerging artists.
“At the heart of the Pigment Magazine is storytelling,” says founder Patricia Andrews-Keenan. “Work created by Black artists is profound and beautiful and what we know for sure is there is a story behind the work, and we are focused on telling that story in a meaningful way.”
The award comes just ahead of October’s Black Fine Art Month, an annual celebration founded by Pigment in 2019. For the past three years the DuSable Museum of African American History, a Smithsonian Affiliate, has been a partner with Pigment in the effort. Pigment International will open the month on October 1 with a discussion in the DuSable Roundhouse in front of the Kara Walker Exhibition, an Initiative of Common Cause. During the 2020 pandemic the program went virtual and included participants from across the country. The theme for this year revolves around telling a more complete story of history through public art and monuments produced by artists of color.
Michelle Duster, great granddaughter of Ida B. Wells will join the discussion at the Cliff Dwellers on October 15. A monument commemorating Wells, by international sculpture Richard Hunt was unveiled earlier this year and Duster is also working on a mural that commemorates the suffragette movement and Wells’ role in it. An international discussion on murals will take place on Thursday, October 21st in partnership with Instituto Allende in San Miguel, MX; the AARP Experience Corp will host a virtual conversation with Richard Hunt on October 22nd; and Black Fine Art Month ends with a reception on October 29th at Bourdeau Griffin Design Center. This year’s celebration includes partnerships with the African American Arts Alliance, Diasporal Rhythms and the South Side Community Art Center. A full schedule of Chicago and national events is available at the Black Fine Art Month website.
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About Black Fine Art Month
Held each October, Black Fine Art Month is a global celebration of the Black Fine Art aesthetic, an annual recognition of artists, innovators, collectors, curators and those vested in the Black Art tradition, and an opportunity to commemorate and elevate these contributions through
art programming. Black Fine Art Month is an initiativ e of Pigment International™. The Salons will be streamed live via YouTube and on social media. The celebration will be documented in Pigment Magazine, an Ozzie Award Finalist for “Best Design for New Magazine.” Visit Pigment International on IG FB and Twitter
