The newest exhibit at the Nasher Museum of Art, is "Something All Our Own" in more ways than one. Not only is that the title of the African American art exhibit which opens Saturday, but the show is drawn from the personal collection of one of Duke's own legends, former basketball player Grant Hill.
Forty-six paintings, collages and sculptures selected from Hill's 15 years of art collecting comprise the show, which has been touring the country since 2003. The tour began in Orlando, Fla., the home of Hill's NBA Team, the Orlando Magic. Since then, the art has been displayed in five other cities. The Nasher represents the last stop for the collection.
Having the tour end at Duke is symbolic, Hill said. "Duke has always been home," he said. "Whether I am returning to see a doctor, or go to a game or visit my family in the off-season, it's always special coming back to the comfort of home."
The exhibit includes 21 pieces by painter and sculptor Elizabeth Catlett, three colorful oil paintings from Hugh Lee Smith and one John Biggers lithograph celebrating the roles of black women.
All of the artists whose work is featured are black, and most of their art depicts elements of African American history, Hill said. "It's important for all people to see people of all races who are successful in the arts, and on display in a museum. It's another avenue to speak to young boys and girls."
One lithograph by Catlett, Singing Our Songs, was inspired by the poem "For My People" by Margaret Walker. The lithograph is split into a grid, with each segment depicting an individual, who is either singing or speaking, set against a red, white and blue background. Hill said the piece evokes the spirit of demonstration central to the civil rights movement.
Another Catlett piece explores the themes of family and community. Mother and Child is a pair of onyx sculptures that depicts a child in the arms of its mother. The child is at once resting in the safety of the mother's arms and straining to break free.
The exhibit includes work by renowned African American artist Romare Bearden, whose art is also featured in a separate exhibit opening Saturday.
Hill, the NBA's number one draft pick in 1994, said he did not originally plan to display his art publicly but hopes that by doing so he can expose different communities to art they would not otherwise see.
Duke University Press published a book about the exhibit that includes full-color reproductions of each of the works. Hill said he hopes the book can be another avenue for teaching people about African American art. Next to each reproduction is a note from Hill about what the artwork means to him or to the African American community. The book also contains essays by Hill, Hill's father (Calvin Hill, one-time Dallas Cowboys running back), men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski and Duke Professor Emeritus John Hope Franklin.
Hill is donating his portion of the book's profits to museums.
A member of Duke's back-to-back 1991 and 1992 championship teams, Hill has collected art since his days as a college student. Over the years, he has built an extensive collection, only a part of which is represented in "Something All Our Own."
Hill said when he and his wife, Tamia, decided to share their art publicly, they got in touch with family friend Alvia Wardlaw, director and curator of the University Museum at Texas Southern University.
Wardlaw helped put together the exhibit, visiting Duke earlier this year to help plan the installation, said Anne Schroder, associate curator at the Nasher. The combined efforts of the Nasher team and Wardlaw have helped create the unique installation museum-goers will see Saturday. "It's worked out very well. I think the show looks beautiful in the space," Schroder said.
One of the focal points of the exhibit is a 74-inch by 38-inch portrait of Malcolm X by painter Edward Jackson.
Malcolm X is the largest piece in the collection and registers a commanding presence, said Schroder. "You want to be able to look in the gallery and see something that really captures your eye, and we did that with Malcom X."
Schroder, like Hill, said she believes "Something All Our Own" sends a positive message and provides an opportunity to showcase specifically African American art.
"This is an exhibition that is going to have very broad appeal," she said. "It doesn't matter what your background is, they are very compelling works."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.