Kanitra Fletcher Explained

Kanitra Fletcher
Education:Rutgers University–New Brunswick (BA);
University of Texas at Austin (MA);
Cornell University (PhD)
Occupation:Curator, Art Historian
Years Active:2013-Present
Employer:National Gallery of Art
Associate Curator of African American and Afro-Diasporic Art

Kanitra Fletcher is an American curator and art historian currently working as associate curator of African American and Afro-Diasporic art at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Named to her role in January 2021 after serving as an associate curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Fletcher is the National Gallery's first curator dedicated to acquiring, stewarding, and exhibiting work by African American artists. Fletcher's academic specializations include the art of Brazil and Latin America and the Black avant-garde.

Education and early career

Fletcher was raised in Houston. She graduated from Rutgers University-New Brunswick with a BA in English literature before receiving an MA in Latin American studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2011. In 2019 she earned a PhD in art history from Cornell University, where her thesis focused on Black aesthetics and the Black avant-garde in the mid-20th century.[1] [2]

She worked as an assistant at a number of museums in New York prior to her career as a curator, including the Bronx Museum of the Arts, Museum of Modern Art, and New Museum.[3]

Curatorial career

In 2013, Fletcher was chosen as the curator of video art at Landmarks, the public art program of her alma mater UT Austin.

She began at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH) as a curatorial assistant in July 2017 before becoming an associate curator of modern and contemporary art. During her time at MFAH she oversaw the 2021 showing of Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power, which originated at the Tate Modern in London in 2017.[4] [5] [6]

Fletcher was announced as the National Gallery of Art's first associate curator of African American and Afro-Diasporic art on January 13, 2021.[7] [8] [9] [10] Her first curated show at the National Gallery was Afro-Atlantic Histories in 2022, which she had first adapted for MFAH in 2021 from its original showing at the São Paulo Museum of Art.[11] [12]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Kanitra Fletcher . Cornell University . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190617224644/https://arthistory.cornell.edu/kanitra-fletcher . 17 June 2019 . live.
  2. Web site: EN (AVANT) GARDE!: BLACK AMERICAN ARTISTS FOR AND AGAINST BLACK AESTHETICS, 1925-1975 . Cornell University Library . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210420163434/https://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/67251 . 20 April 2021 . live.
  3. Web site: Blay . Christopher . MFAH's Kanitra Fletcher Named National Gallery's Associate Curator of African American and Afro-Diasporic Art . Glasstire . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211104155011/https://glasstire.com/2021/01/13/mfahs-kanitra-fletcher-named-national-gallerys-associate-curator-of-african-american-and-afro-diasporic-art/ . 4 November 2021 . 13 January 2021 . live.
  4. Web site: Soul of a Nation . Aesthetica . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211019224833/https://aestheticamagazine.com/soul-of-a-nation/ . 19 October 2021 . 7 August 2020 . live.
  5. Web site: Soul of a Nation . Tate . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220501192704/https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/soul-nation-art-age-black-power . 1 May 2022 . live.
  6. Web site: Liu . Catherine . MFAH's 'Art In The Age Of Black Power' Reflects On Both Past And Present . Houston Public Media . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211106075243/https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/arts-culture/2020/07/13/377704/mfahs-art-in-the-age-of-black-power-reflects-on-past-and-present/ . 6 November 2021 . 13 July 2020 . live.
  7. Web site: Martinique . Elena . Two Women of Color Hired at Major Art Institutions . Widewalls . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210228223245/https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/naomi-beckwith-guggenheim-kanitra-fletcher-nga . 28 February 2021 . 18 January 2021 . live.
  8. Web site: Valentine . Victoria L. . National Gallery of Art Makes 4 New Hires, Including First Curator of African American and Afro-Diasporic Art . Culture Type . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210505194707/https://www.culturetype.com/2021/01/13/national-gallery-of-art-makes-4-new-hires-including-first-curator-of-african-american-and-afro-diasporic-art/ . 5 May 2021 . 13 January 2021 . live.
  9. Web site: Greenberger . Alex . National Gallery Hires Kanitra Fletcher as Its First Curator of African American Art . ARTnews . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220411132349/https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/kanitra-fletcher-national-gallery-of-art-1234581342/ . 11 April 2022 . 14 January 2021 . live.
  10. Web site: National Gallery of Art Announces New Staff Appointed to Key Positions Across the Museum . NGA . . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220401132124/https://www.nga.gov/press/2021/staff-2021-01.html . 1 April 2022 . 13 January 2021 . live.
  11. Web site: Afro-Atlantic Histories . NGA . . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220418003612/https://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/2022/afro-atlantic-histories.html . 18 April 2022 . live.
  12. News: Kennicott . Philip . National Gallery enters new, overdue era with African diaspora show . . 1 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220418012831/https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/04/14/national-gallery-afro-atlantic-histories/ . 18 April 2022 . 14 April 2022 . live.

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