The speed art museum will implement the final phase of "louisville's black avant-garde", a series of exhibitions that address inequality in the appreciation of black artists and their works

The J.B. Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky was awarded a $802,520 Project Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Museums for America (CFDA 45.301) program. The grant will support the final phase of the museum's "Louisville's Black Avant-Garde" exhibition series, which addresses inequality in the appreciation of Black artists and their works. Key activities include planning and finalizing two single-artist exhibitions and a major group exhibition, conducting research and archival documentation, and completing conservation assessments. Each exhibition will be accompanied by a publication and public programming, with the goal of better preserving and presenting the legacies of overlooked Black artists and increasing recognition of their central role in Louisville's artistic movements. The project aims to develop deeper relationships with the artists and their family members to highlight the underappreciated histories of gallery enterprises and the Louisville Art Workshop.

The project team will continue developing relationships with the artists and their family members to develop exhibitions that highlight the underappreciated histories of gallery enterprises and the louisville art workshop in kentucky. Project activities will include planning and finalizing two single-artist exhibitions and a major group exhibition including convening a project committee comprised of museum staff, artists and family members; conducting research, archival documentation, and completing conservation assessments. Each exhibition will be accompanied by a publication and public programming. The resulting exhibitions and educational resources will better preserve and present the legacies of artists who have been overlooked and increase recognition of black artists and the central role that louisville played in fostering artistic movements.