Born: Memphis, TN
Lives and works in New York City
EDUCATION:
1976 MFA, Syracuse University (Fellow), Syracuse, NY 1974 BFA, Memphis Academy of Art, Memphis, TN
SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
2021 “Chromatic Rhythm – James Little: Paintings on Paper,” Sarah Moody Gallery of Art, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama and Ewing Gallery of Art + Architecture, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee
2020 “James Little: Dots and Slants,” Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, CA
2018 “Slants and White Paintings,” June Kelly Gallery, New York
2016 “Informed by Rhythm: Recent Works by James Little”, Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, CA
2015 “Color/Barriers: Recent Work”, June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY
2013 “Never Say Never”, essay by Karen Wilkin, June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY
2011 “Ex Pluribus Unum: New Paintings”, essay by Mario Naves, June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY
2009 “De-Classified”, essay by James Harithas, June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY
2003 “Beyond Geometry: New Paintings”, essay by Robert C. Morgan, L.I.C.K. Ltd. Fine Art, Long Island City, NY
1995 “Recent Abstract Paintings”, Kenkeleba Gallery, New York, NY
1992 “James Little: Selected Works from the Past Decade”, Lubin House Gallery, Syracuse University, New York
1990 “Tondos and Ovals”, essay by April Kingsley, June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY
1989 “James Little: Recent Paintings”, The Christian Science Church, Boston, MA
1988 “James Little & Al Loving: New Work”, June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY “New York to Memphis”, Alice Bingham Gallery, Memphis, TN
“New Paintings”, June Kelly Gallery, New York
1987 “New Paintings”, Liz Harris Gallery, Boston, MA
1985 “James Little: Format Paintings”, Harris Brown Gallery, Boston, MA
1982 “Recent Oil Paintings”, essay by April Kingsley, Alternative Museum, New York
1976 “Paintings by James Little”, curated by Ronald Kuchta, Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, NY
GROUP EXHIBITIONS:
2021 “The Dirty South: Contemporary Art, Material Culture, and the Sonic Impulse,” Curated by Valerie Cassel Oliver, Virginia Museum of fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia
2019 “New York Centric,” Art Students League of New York, New York
“The Shape of Abstraction: Selections from the Ollie Collection,” St. Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, Missouri
“The League of Masters, Past and Present: Works by Art Students League Teachers and Students,” Presented by Incollect, Design Center, New York
2018 “Color/Line/Form,” Rosenbaum Contemporary, Boca Raton, Florida
“The Masters: Teachers and Their Students,” Art Students League of New York and Hirschl and Adler Modern, New York
2017 “Celebrating 30 Years, Gallery Artists: Drawings and Photographs,” June Kelly Gallery, New York
2016 “Circa 1970,” Curated by Lauren Haynes, Studio Museum in Harlem, New York -17
“Beyond Borders: Bill Hutson & Friends,” University Museums, Mechanical Hall Gallery, University of Delaware
2016 “Lumière Du Monde,” Panorama International Du Vitrail, Centre International Du Vitrail, Chartes, France
2015 “Outside the Lines: Color Across the Collections,” Curated by Tricia Laughlin Bloom, The Newark Musuem, Newark, New Jersey
“Works on Paper: Selections from the Gallery,” Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California
“Decoding the Abstract Unlimited Potential,” Curated by James Austin Murray, Lyons Wier Gallery, New York
2014 “Black in the Abstract, Part 2, 65th Anniversary”, with curatorial contributions by Valerie Cassel Oliver, Bill Arning and Dean Daderko, Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, TX
2012 “TODAY’S VISUAL LANGUAGE: SOUTHERN ABSTRACTION, A FRESH LOOK”, curated by Donan Flooz, Curator of Exhibitions, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL; digital catalogue
2010 “Abstract Relations”, collaboration between the David C. Driskell Center at the University of Maryland and the University of Delaware Museum, co-curators Dr. Julie L. McGee and Dr. Adrienne L. Childs, University of Delaware, Mechanical Hall Gallery, Mineralogical Museum, Newark, DE
“It’s A Wonderful 10th”, Sideshow Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2008 “Shape Shifters: New Yorks Painters”, The A.D. Gallery, University of North Carolina at Pembroke; catalogue
2007 “Three One-Man Exhibitions: James Little, Aimé Mpane, George Smith”, Station Museum of Contemporary Art, Houston, TX; brochure
2006 “The 181st Annual Invitational Exhibition of Contemporary American Art”, National Academy of Design, New York; catalogue
2005 “Different Ways of Seeing: The Expanding World of Abstraction”, The Noyes Museum of Contemporary Art, Oceanville, NJ
“Optical Stimulations: American Abstract Artists”, Yellow Bird Gallery, Newburgh, NY “50 Plus”, Holland Tunnel Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
“Raising the Bar: James Little and Thornton Willis”, Sideshow Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2004 “Seeds and Roots: Selections from the Permanent Collection”, The Studio Museum in Harlem, New York, NY
“A Century of African American Art: The Paul R. Jones Collection”, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
2003 “Theories: Abstract New York”, Roger Ramsay Gallery, Chicago, IL
2002 “No Greater Love, Abstraction”, Jack Tilton/Anna Kustera Gallery, New York “Ajita – Unconquerable”, The Station, Houston, TX; catalogue
“500 Works on Paper”, Gary Snyder Fine Art, New York
“Amplified Abstraction”, Chapel, Plantage, Doklaan 8-12, Amsterdam, Holland
2001 “Painted in New York City: Viewpoints of Recent Developments in Abstract Painting”, Hofstra Museum, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY; catalogue
2000 “Significant Pursuits: Paint and Geometry”, Smack Mellon Studios, Brooklyn, NY “Straight Painting”, The Painting Center, New York, NY
1999 “Straight No Chaser”, The Puffin Room, The Puffin Foundation, New York “The Art of Absolute Desire”, 450 Broadway, New York
“The Power of Drawing”, Westbeth Gallery, New York
1998 “New Directions ‘98’ 14th Annual National Juried Fine Arts Exhibition”, Duchess County Art Association, Barrett Art Center, Poughkeepsie, NY
“New York Eight”, Luise Ross Gallery, New York
“The Fanelli Show”, O. K. Harris Gallery, New York
“Works On, With and Made Out of Paper”, Sideshow 195, Brooklyn, NY
“The African-American Fine Arts Collection of the New Jersey State Museum”, New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ
“Postcards from Black America”, curated by Rob Perrée, De Beyerd, Center for Contemporary Art in Breda, Netherlands, and the Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, Netherlands; catalogue
“Tenth Anniversary Exhibit: Arts in the Park, Then and Now”, Memphis Arts Festival, Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, TN; catalogue
“de leugenaars/the liars (I) Helder en Verzadigd Clear and Saturated, Arti et Amicitiae”, Amsterdam, Holland; catalogue
“Color, Matter, Energy”, Galerie Maria Chailloux, Hogeschool van Amsterdam, Holland
MUSEUM AND CORPORATE COLLECTIONS:
Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, NJ
Newark Museum, NJ
New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ
Studio Museum in Harlem, New York
Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, TN
Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, AR
State University of New York, Albany, NY
Memphis Academy of Art, TN
Maatschappij Arti Et Amicitiae, Amsterdam, Holland Menil Collection, Houston, TX
Library of Congress, Washington, DC
AT&T, New York and Florida
Gucci Corporation, Boston, MA
Mutual of New York Assurance Company, New York Occidental Petroleum Company, Aberdeen, Scotland Phillips/Schwab Inc., New York
Sherbourne, Powers and Needham, Inc., Boston, MA Stephen Mallory Associates, New York
Veryss Corporation, Boston, MA
The Twentieth Century Fund, New York
U.N.C. Ventures, Boston
Rex Auchincloss Collection, New York
The Paul Jones Collection, Atlanta, GA
James and Ann Harithas Collection, Houston, TX
AWARDS AND HONORS:
2009 Joan Mitchell Foundation Award in Painting, New York
2000 Pollock-Krasner Award, Pollock-Krasner Foundation, New York 1999 Finalist, Triangle Artists Workshop, World Trade Center, New York 1997 Honorarium, New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ
Honorarium, Columbia College, Chicago, IL
1994 Honorarium, The Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, TN
1992 Honorarium, Center for the Performing and Visual Arts, Inc., Jamaica, NY 1987 Artist-in-Residence Fellowship, Printmaking Workshop, New York
1983 Honorarium, Brooks Memorial Art Gallery, Memphis, TN
Honorarium, Memphis Academy of Art, Memphis, TN
1981 Creative Artists Public Service Grant, New York State, New York 1975 Marion Jones Fellowship, Syracuse University, NY
1974 Afro-American Studies Fellowship, Syracuse University, NY
Honorarium, Southwestern University, Memphis, TN