Art community reacts strongly to news of Hammonds House reorganization

It’s all over social media. Surprise, confusion and even outrage from Atlanta artists and arts administrators about the recent, unexpected shake-up at Hammonds House.

Some artists were willing to talk on the record, some were not, but everyone ArtsATL spoke with this week agreed: Hammonds House is an arts treasure that deserves to live on. Representatives of the museum have assured ArtsATL that it will. They’ve been tight-lipped about specifics, however, saying only that they are embarking on a three-year reorganization that includes “innovative programming” and a new leadership structure. Calls and texts to board president W. Imara Canady earlier this week were referred to the museum’s public relations firm, which stated “information about this year’s exhibitions and virtual programming will be sent out once details are confirmed.”

The loss of executive director Karen Comer Lowe, a respected arts administrator whose position was eliminated on January 12, the cancellation of the Donald Locke exhibit scheduled to open February 11, and the temporary closure of the museum caught the art world off guard and got people thinking about what the museum means to them. (A statement on the website says it’s closed because of Covid and will reopen in the spring.)

“I am . . . shocked,” said Arnika Dawkins, owner of the eponymous photography gallery on Cascade Road. “I was thrilled with the infinite possibilities for Hammonds House under Karen Comer Lowe’s leadership. It’s the art world’s loss.” Dawkins has frequently collaborated with the museum. “It is painful when arts organizations have challenges.”

Sculptor Alfred Amadu Conteh, didn’t mince words on Facebook. Comer Lowe has done “a great job to improve the visibility and gravitas of the programming and exhibitions,” he wrote. “Their board of trustees DEFINITELY have some explaining to do about this, y’all.”

Artist Shanequa Gay was an advocate for Comer Lowe when Hammonds House began its search to replace former executive director Leatrice Ellzy Wright, who was recruited by New York’s Apollo Theater in April 2021.

“[Karen] was the only one on my list that I believed could successfully execute, represent and rally the Atlanta community around one of the few remaining African American arts institutions in the city,” Gay wrote in an email. “Her vision to revamp the institution as a contemporary Black Arts space that could compete on a national level . . . was cut short and for what reason I am still unclear. I would like to see her reinstated.”

That’s highly unlikely, but given her stellar reputation, Comer Lowe won’t be out of work for long. She is currently curating the Genevieve Gaignard exhibit opening February 12 at Atlanta Contemporary. Regardless of who replaces her — board president Canady has said it will be a two-person team, a managing director “and someone on the artistic side” — the fervent hope in the art community is that Hammonds House will continue to be the unique institution that has inspired generations of artists.

Located in a leafy neighborhood of elegant Victorian homes, the museum is the former residence of the late Dr. Otis Thrash Hammonds, an anesthesiologist and arts patron. After he died in 1985, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners bought the house and the 250 artworks he had collected over the years. It’s still a Fulton County property and now has more than 450 works, many by renowned Black artists such as Romare Bearden, Radcliffe Bailey and Elizabeth Catlett.

Its mission, according to the website, is “to preserve, exhibit, interpret and increase public awareness about the contributions that visual artists of African descent have made to world culture . . . Artistic excellence, culture and community is the focus of our vision.”

According to former employee and curator Kevin Sipp, the idea was to create a place not only to view art but to research the contribution of African American art to world culture. Sipp worked at the museum for 15 years in various capacities and is now public art coordinator for three city-owned galleries.

Sipp believes the physical disrespect of people begins with visual disrespect of a people. “Hammonds House is a place where African Americans can see the physical and metaphysical beauty of themselves,” he says.

Yanique Norman is one of many artists who credit the museum for launching their careers. “I’m not from Atlanta so when I came here in 2001, Hammonds House was an essential space for me,” Norman says. “Even when exhibitions weren’t open, I felt I had to be there. It was very vibrant. The central spot.”

Sipp connected her to Comer Lowe, who helped Norman with her first professional art show. “It got so much attention that it led to my being represented by Sandler Hudson,” says Norman, who has maintained many of the relationships she established through the museum. “I’m definitely upset” about the recent news, she says. “I am invested in the museum’s success because it made me successful.”

Artist and scholar Dr. Fahamu Pecou, founding director of the African Diaspora Art Museum of Atlanta, has a similar story. He says the museum has been part of his artistic journey since he was 22 years old. “One of the first times I showed my work after college was at Hammonds House. It has meant a lot to me personally,” he says. Pecou is now an internationally known artist with an exhibit opening in Paris later this year.

Sipp waxes ecstatic when talking about the art. “The museum became one of the most incredible art collections in the Southeast,” he says. “You could almost walk through the history of African American art with this one man’s collection.”

Maintaining such an art trove, however, requires know-how and money. “They haven’t always had the resources to conserve and care for the collection,” says artist, curator and educator Lisa Tuttle, whose recent exhibit focused on Confederate symbols in Atlanta. “Hammonds House has been challenged (financially) on and off since the beginning,” she adds. “It’s a challenge to keep an arts organization going. We all struggle with that.” It’s unclear if lack of financial resources played a role in the recent reorganization.

Art spaces often rent out their facilities to bring in additional dollars, something that Hammonds House has done in the past. But, says Sipp, “there is always a fine balance in making sure that social events don’t overshadow the core mission of the institution.”

It’s not clear yet if Hammonds House will do more events. It also remains to be seen how much it will expand its online store and virtual programming. The digital content was developed initially during Wright’s tenure, when the museum was closed for more than a year because of the pandemic.

An interesting twist to the situation is the increased financial support Hammonds House got from Fulton County Arts and Culture just a few months ago. According to David Manuel III, Fulton County director of arts and culture, the agency considers Hammonds House a legacy organization, one of three that it supports. The agency upped its investment in the museum from $70,000 to $200,000 in 2021 to match what the other two legacy organizations, Johns Creek Arts Center and the Chattahoochee Nature Center, received.

While giving a shout-out to the county for its support, muralist and activist Charmaine Minniefield bemoans the lack of financial resources for small Black-led arts organizations. “For me it’s about having the resources needed to realize the artistic vision, to leverage the tangible assets, to activate a professional network, to continue to showcase the work of Black artists,” she says. “I pray that the organization can receive the support it needs to achieve this mission forward.”

Pecou’s greatest concern is what the institution is saying about how it is going to be run, “which is alarming to say the least,” he says. “We don’t have a full understanding of the why and what next.” He hopes Hammonds House will rebound and continue to be an important institution for Black art and culture in Atlanta. “Because it’s the only physical one we have. We need that voice in the community.”