HOUSTON – The Menil Collection’s newest exhibition opened in late January, highlighting three defining series of work by pioneering abstract artist Joe Overstreet.
It highlights three defining series of work by pioneering African American artist Joe Overstreet (1933–2019) and features Overstreet’s landmark Flight Pattern series of radially suspended paintings from the early 1970s.
In fact, this is the first major museum exhibition in thirty years devoted to his work titled ’Joe Overstreet: Taking Flight.’
Throughout his career, the artist sought to intertwine abstraction and social politics into his work, exploring the idea of freedom and the Black experience in the United States.
John and Dominique de Menil, founders of the Menil Collection, championed the artist in the 1970s, purchased some of his works, and invited him to present a solo show at the DeLUXE Theater in Houston in 1972.
Guests can enjoy this exhibit on display now through July 13th.
Watch as Lauren Kelly and The Menil Collection’s Associate Curator of Modern Art, Natalie Dupêcher, take us inside.