Lois Mailou Jones’ love of bold color is evident in her 1980 acrylic painting “Symboles d’Afrique I.”A decorator once told Lois Mailou Jones that a “colored girl” wasn’t capable of producing such beautiful designs. This was a turning point in the young black woman’s artistic career — a career that eventually brought her recognition from U.S. presidents for her contributions to the arts.
A retrospective exhibit of paintings, drawings and textile designs by Jones opens today at the Hunter Museum of American Art. “A Life in Vibrant Color” includes 70 works and showcases the many themes Jones explored during her long and illustrious career.
Jones (1905-1998) was educated at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She began her career as a textile designer and sold her bold fabric creations to many department stores until the aforementioned insult by a decorator. This prompted Jones to shift her focus to the fine arts so she could sign her name to her work.
While teaching at Palmer Memorial Institute in North Carolina, she began painting. These early works, however, were much less colorful than the later pieces for which she would become famous.
Jones evolved continuously throughout her career — her work reflecting the influence of people who crossed her path, as well as her travels to France, Africa, Haiti and the Caribbean.