Brooklyn-based Mickalene Thomas creates art that draws on “art history and popular culture to create a contemporary vision of female sexuality, beauty and power.” She examines how our sense of self is often informed by the ways we are represented in pop culture.

Mickalene Thomas, Le Dejeuner sur l’herbe: Les trois femmes noires (detail), 2010. Rhinestones, acrylic, and enamel on wood panel, 304.8 x 731.5 cm. The Rachel and Jean-Pierre Lehmann Collection © Mickalene Thomas

This month, Mickalene Thomas’ exhibit, Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires, opens at the AGO. The exhibit seeks to challenge the typical representations of Black women, presenting a bold collection of politically charged paintings, silkscreens, photographs, time-based media and site-specific installations from a black, queer, feminist perspective. Gleaning inspiration from Impressionism, Cubism, Dadaism and the Harlem Renaissance, Mickalene Thomas: Femmes Noires is the first large-scale solo exhibition by this African-American contemporary artist to be staged in Canada.

If you’re interested in a deeper conversation about race, representation and re-framing perspectives, you won’t want to miss this. 

Mickalene will be at the AGO in person later this month (November 27) to introduce her exhibit and give an artist’s talk. Book your free ticket here.