When the Detroit Institute of Arts unveiled its newly renovated galleries dedicated to African American art last fall, the most important change wasn't just curation—it was spatial. For decades, the works of Black artists have been scattered in museums or relegated to the quiet corners of the modern wing. Now, after a major redesign, they sit in the heart of the center, steps from Diego Rivera's Detroit Industry Murals, the museum's most visited landmark, prominently placed in the center's narrative of American culture.
The architect of this change is leading curator of African American art Valerie Mercer, who joined the museum in 2001 after years at the Studio Museum in Harlem with the mandate to transform an underrepresented collection area into a distinct force. At the time, the museum held only a handful of works by African American artists, but Mercer approached the project with the acumen of a historian, skillfully finding pieces that would allow the museum to tell a fuller, more accurate story of American art.
In “Reimagine African American Art,” the re-installation follows a line from nineteenth-century artists like Robert S. Duncanson—a major figure of his time who later fell out of mainstream art history—to twentieth-century innovators like Sam Gilliam. The four galleries travel through important cultural periods, including the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts Movement, while presenting artists whose contributions are often sidelined in canonical studies.
The importance of the rehang is not only in the promotion of qualified talent but also in the culmination of a decades-long institutional restructuring. By moving African American art from the fringes of the museum to its true center, the DIA transformed the Mercer's preservation project into a lasting architectural commitment. The Spectator recently sat down with him to discuss his role in the development of the museum's collection, what he hopes to achieve through re-installation and public feedback.
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 has more than 700 works, and how it has evolved?
When I was hired, there was a specific goal to create an African American art center. The previous director realized that the museum was not doing enough to engage Detroit's African American community. At that time, African Americans were invisible, 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 develop the collection. When I arrived, there were very few pieces of African American art in the museum's collection, and my job was to assess the collection's strengths and weaknesses and begin to find works to fill those gaps. Over the years, I have focused on finding artwork that tells the story of African American art and their contribution to American art history, which I felt was the missing link.
How did you go about building the collection?
It became clear to me that there were huge gaps in this collection and that the history of African American musicians had been neglected. I have been gradually acquiring works over the years, with the goal of showing African American art within the broader context of American art history. I wanted to draw attention to the contributions of these artists, who were often 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. Reinstallation, in particular, is about elevating these artists to a prominent place in the museum, where they can receive the recognition they deserve.
Let's talk about rehang and its importance. The newly reimagined galleries opened with “Reimagine African American Art,” featuring works from the early 1800s through the 1980s and fine art. important periods of art history, including the Harlem Renaissance, Socialist Realism, Civil Rights era art and the Black Arts Movement. What goals motivated your choice?
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 this exhibit are under-recognized, but their work is important to understanding the history of art in the U.S. This exhibit gives visitors the opportunity to learn about these artists and appreciate their role in shaping American art. The exhibit is also a response to the erasure of African American art history and artists, and provides visitors with a space to engage with their work in a meaningful way.
Are there any artists front and center in the rebrand that you feel are under-recognized?
Everything the artists in the show deserve more recognition, but Robert Duncanson, in particular, stands out. He was one of the first African-American artists to gain national recognition in his time, but for many years, his work was ignored and became, in a sense, 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 African-American sculptor who was an important figure in 19th-century portraiture and depicted African-Americans and African-Americans when, traditionally, marble sculpture was associated with white figures going back to antiquity. We have these beautiful buses that they do in Minnehaha and Hiawatha. He has such an interesting story—he was among the first African Americans, and also among the first Native Americans, to work with marble. His work is often overshadowed by his contemporaries, but he made a significant contribution to American art. We have one of his works, and there is a retrospective of his work at the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts.
But most of the artists in this program are not well recognized, even now. Most of them weren't really famous—they got some recognition late in 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 genuinely surprised.
How was the re-installation received by visitors?
The response has been overwhelmingly positive. People have told me they've been back many times since the galleries opened, especially for “Reimagine African American Art,” and the galleries have gotten great press. People are learning a lot, which makes me feel really happy, because that's what I'm looking for. I want people to read this history, because it is very important. The African American community here in Detroit is a very strong presence with 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 shows, people would ask, what did African American artists do during slavery? And the answer, of course, is that people like Duncanson have been able to do jobs under extraordinary circumstances. Now we can show that artists like him and Henry Ossawa Tanner were truly unique.
Was there anything surprising about the first visitor's response?
African American art collectors are familiar with the names of many of the artists in this show, because they are in the books, they are in African American art research and their work is highly sought after in those circles. We ran an early focus group of people who were not art historians but who were very familiar with this art. There is furniture in the galleries, a sofa, by Thomas Day, an African American furniture maker from North Carolina who owned his own company and had employees. He was beautiful. I showed the couches to the group, and what surprised me was how they reacted to it. They were talking about it on its own merits as an object, and while they liked a lot of the artwork in the show, indeed he liked this piece of furniture. They started talking about it almost as if it were a person. I have never experienced anything like that; they were just drawn to it.
I have to ask, do you have a favorite piece of art in the game?
I always get out of that question by joking that I'm a Gemini, so it changes all the time. But honestly, as a manager, I can't really have a favorite. If you ask me at 10 in the morning, I will give you one answer, and at 3 in the afternoon, it has changed, because I like to love each piece. Art has always fascinated me, and I love reading about artists. Also, since I love African American art, I see a lot of art connected. People will say to me, you studied German art, now how do you do African American art? But I don't see it as something different. A number of African American artists, like Vincent Smith, would talk to me about how their work influenced German Expressionism, and I could see that in his paintings. He was an artist of the Black Arts Movement who focused on working class people, the Civil Rights Movement and the struggle, and his work is expressive and dramatic. And today, many artists combine many cultures in their work. It is interconnected.
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