Melvin Smith and Rose Smith: ‘Journey of A Lost Tribe’. Fort Gansevoort

Working in collaboration with Amanda Hunt, Head of Public Engagement, Learning and Impact at the Walker Art Center, and Former Director of Public Programs and Creative Practice at the Lucas Museum, Fort Gansevoort will present Journey of A Lost Tribe, its first exhibition with Minnesota-based artists Melvin Smith and Rose Smith. Working in dramatically different styles and media, the Smiths have cultivated their artistic careers as a side-by-side artist couple, traveling to urban epicenters of Black art and culture in search of community and creative exchange. The time they have spent in Harlem, New York, and the South Side of Chicago has greatly influenced their styles and techniques. Filtered through the lens of memory and social observation, the Smiths’ artworks feature urban scenes and portraits that present realist, expressionist, and at times allegorical takes on Black life in America. This online presentation is a prelude to the gallery’s first major exhibition with the Smiths in its New York City space in late 2023.