Butler to Exhibit Two New Works at Art Basel 2022, Inspired By Gordon Parks Foundation Fellowship, Ahead of 2023 Exhibition at Jeffrey Deitch in New York

CHICAGO - Cleo Dell Art + Advisory, a global visual arts and management consulting firm, today announced a series of upcoming projects from award-winning American textile artist Bisa Butler. Following her acclaimed solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago in 2021, Butler will be traveling across the globe, exhibiting at a number of fairs and galleries, most notably at Art Basel, which brings together more than 4,000 artists from five continents to Basel, Switzerland. 

Using vibrant colors, Butler transforms photographs that capture the souls, personalities, and humanity of Black men, women, and children into vibrant textile quilts that offer an in-depth, alternative portrayal of the Black experience while uplifting and celebrating the American popular art of quilting. The 2021 show “Bisa Butler: Portraits” was the most popular textile show in the Art Institute’s history, prompting the museum to extend the exhibit by five months. 

At Art Basel, Butler will join American art dealer and curator Jeffrey Deitch to unveil two brand new works: “Mobile Madonna” and “If I Ruled the World, Imagine That.” Butler, a 2022 recipient of the renowned Gordon Parks Foundation Fellowship in Art, was inspired to create the piece “Mobile Madonna” by an image in the Foundation's archives.

“I am honored for this opportunity to work with Jeffrey Deitch and to have my work cross global lines. This is a level of elevation that I dreamed of as a child and to see this reality come to life is simply amazing,” Butler said. “I believe I am one in a long line of Black people who are searching for our place - the good place, the equal place, where we find happiness and security. That’s what I want people to connect with when they see my work. I want them to see themselves. I want them to see the truth about Black Americans. I want them to correct, in their minds, the lies and misconceptions that have been fed to them. There is something much bigger than us. We are powerful when we tap into it, together.” 

“We are so thrilled to see Bisa’s work showcased and celebrated internationally,” said Erica Hubbard, Founder and CEO of Cleo Dell Art + Advisory. “Bisa has transformed the quilting medium, increasing its recognition and engaging new audiences. It is an honor to support an artist who uses her craft and platform to amplify the culture.”

Additional exhibitions are listed below: 

● May 13 – “Don’t Tread on Me, God Damn, Let’s Go!—The Harlem Hellfighters” (2021) will be featured in the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum as part of the exhibit “This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World.” This piece is inspired by a portrait of the Harlem Hellfighters, a World War I regiment of Black and Puerto Rican soldiers, from the National Archives. 

● Winter 2023 – Solo exhibition at the Gordon Parks Foundation in Pleasantville, New York. 

● Spring 2023 – Solo exhibition at the Jeffrey Deitch Gallery in New York, New York.

Butler's dynamic work is currently on view at the following locations:

● Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) in Los Angeles, California 

● National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. 

● Perez Art Museum Miami in Miami, Florida 

● The Newark Museum of Art in Newark, New Jersey 

● Hunter Museum of American Art in Chattanooga, Tennessee  

Butler has exhibited recently at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston and the Katonah Museum of Art. In addition, Butler was honored last week at the American Folk Art Museum’s 60th Anniversary Benefit Gala in New York. 

For more information about Cleo Dell Art + Advisory please visit www.cleodell.com.

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Cleo Dell Art + Advisory

Cleo Dell Art + Advisory is a management and consultancy firm that works with visual artists and designers while advocating for this creative community. In addition, the firm works with private collectors and institutions to enhance their contemporary collections.