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Downtown gallery
pays tribute to late Toledo sculptor
with exhibition of local and regional
artists
in the
longest-running Black History Month art
event in Toledo
On
Friday, January 28th, 20
North Gallery opens their 16th
Annual Black History Month
Exhibit: Homage to LeMaxie Glover.
The show continues through Saturday,
March 12, 2011. The exhibition was
founded by Peggy Grant (current Art
Director of 20 North Gallery) in the
late 1970’s. Since then, it has
been exhibited throughout various
locations in the Toledo community and
now, for sixteen years, is proudly
presented by 20 North Gallery.
This event has become an integral part
of Toledo’s Black History Month
celebrations, and in recognizing the
contributions and accomplishments of
prominent African-American artists and
leaders in our community.
Each
year’s exhibit showcases art work of the
best Black artists of our region, as
well as many nationally recognized
artists. In addition, 20 North
Gallery arranges school visits and
participatory workshops given by
visiting artists in local elementary and
secondary schools. Other related
events during the run of this exhibit
have included live poetry readings at 20
North Gallery featuring African-American
poets, storytelling, and live musical
performances. The exhibit and outreach
is made possible by the lifetime of
support paid to this groundbreaking
exhibition by its founder, Peggy Grant.
In 2011,
the exhibit celebrates the legacy of the
late Toledo sculptor, LeMaxie Glover,
whose lifework has served as an
inspiration to countless artists of our
region and beyond, crossing all cultural
boundaries. This year’s exhibit
features selected works from the estate
of Glover and other private collections.
LeMaxie
Glover was born in Kellys, Georgia in
1916 and came to the Toledo area during
the time now known as the Great Northern
Migration in the years of industrial
growth following WWI. A graduate
of Libbey High School, Glover worked
with the New York Central Railroad
Company until, at the age of 34, he
decided to enroll as a full-time student
at what is now The University of Toledo
in Ohio. In 1954 he received his
Bachelor of Education degree. In
1955, through the support of public
grants and private endowments, he
received his MFA from the Cranbrook
Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.
At that time he was one of only three
Black artists ever to study at that
prestigious institution. That same
year, he became the first African
American faculty member of Cranbrook, as
professor of Wood Sculpture.
Further grants from the Toledo Museum of
Art and the Toledo Board of Education
enabled him to continue his artistic
training through European travel and
study.
In 1956,
Glover politely refused offers to teach
at other universities to return to
Toledo as an art instructor for Woodward
High School and later—in a conscious
dedication to support the central city
community—moved to Scott High School.
In addition to teaching high school,
Glover also served as the Director of
the City of Toledo's Arts & Crafts
Program in the mid1960s. After 25
years of teaching, he retired in 1981.
His many
solo and group exhibitions included
yearly participation in the Toledo Area
Artists Exhibit, the Michigan Area
Artists Show, the Ohio Sculptors Show
and numerous community exhibits in
public civic institutions and regional &
national art museums—such as the Toledo
Museum of Art, in Ohio; the Williston
Museum of Art in North Dakota; and the
John Herron Art Institute in
Indianapolis, Indiana. In 1973,
Glover was the first recipient of the
COBA Award (conferred by the
Confederation of Black Artists).
His many civic contributions included
serving, in its inception, on the
Minority Advisory Committee of the Board
of the Toledo Museum of Art.
Glover's work can be found in the
permanent collections of the Williston
Museum of Art; the Basser Museum of Arty
in Alpena, Michigan; The University of
Toledo; numerous private collections
throughout the country; as well as many
secondary schools in the Toledo Public
School system.
Mr.
Glover died at age 67 in 1984, leaving
behind a legacy of community service and
dedication to educating the artists and
art patrons of Toledo’s future.
Also
honored in this year’s exhibit will be
the memory of Toledo’s beloved
Wil Clay
a
painter, sculptor and illustrator who
was a yearly contributor to 20 North
Gallery’s Black History Month
exhibitions and school outreach
presentations. In addition to the
work Clay himself submitted to the 2011
show before his death on January 12th,
the family of Wil Clay have selected
several additional paintings from his
estate to show in a special section of
the exhibit dedicated to his memory.
Gallery visitors are invited to share
reminiscences of Clay as they enjoy
viewing his art exhibited together once
more.
Also
exhibited in the 16th
Annual Black History Month Exhibit:
Homage to LeMaxie Glover is the work
of seventeen other celebrated
Toledo-area artists: Lorenza Arnold;
Aaron S. Bivins; Charles T. Gabriel,
Jr.; Earl VanDerZee Gordon; Alice Grace;
Adam Grant; Ronald Jamison; Elizabeth V.
Jordan; Marcus Nunn; Ahavalyn Pitts;
Brenda Price; Robert E. Shorter; Ramon
R. Tiggs; Mack Walton; Warren and
Yolanda Woodberry and John Wade III from
Ft. Wayne, Indiana.
20 North
Gallery, exhibiting artists and the
family of featured artist, the late
LeMaxie Glover, will be welcoming
friends and collectors at the free
Opening Reception on Friday, January
28th, from 6 - 9p.m. Reception
attendees can begin Black History Month
by enjoying light refreshments,
conversations with these regional
artists and sharing with one another
their stories of Will Clay.
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