Gallery owner Stella Jones with “Haiti Demain,” 1987 (mixed-media collage on canvas) by Lois Mailou Jones. | Photo by Victoria L. Valentine NEW ORLEANS — FOR TWO DECADES, the Central Business District in New Orleans has been home to Stella Jones Gallery. It’s the namesake of a doctor, who turned her passion for collecting African American art into a business that has built longstanding relationships with artists, collectors, and the community. There are a fledgling number of black-owned art galleries in the United States that specialize in African American fine art. In recent years, more have sprouted up focusing on black contemporary art, but few among the old guard have survived the challenging business. Stella Jones is going strong. A mother of four who conquered two careers, she braved Hurricane Katrina and endured the passing, three years ago, of her husband and partner in the gallery, Harry Jones. She forged ahead with the help of of Beryl Johns, who has been a vital part of the gallery operation from almost the beginning. To mark the gallery’s 20th anniversary, a special exhibition of 70 works was mounted pairing “legacy” artists—such as Elizabeth Catlett, Richard Hunt, Lois Maliou Jones, Jacob Lawrence, […]
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