Art Fuels Life

Mashonda Tifrere knows the impact—both individual and collective—of buying and presenting Black art and the importance of Black art funds in museums. The curator, collector, musician, and activist is known for her stunning support of living Black artists, most notably through ArtleadHER, a female-forward exhibition platform and Art Genesis, a platform for all to exhibit and be in dialogue. Tifrere’s work is being celebrated at the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) Art + Soul gala this week that celebrates Black excellence in the visual arts, however recognition isn’t her main goal: “Doing this kind of work, you don't ever really think about if people are paying attention to you,” she says. “You just feel like it's something you have to do.”

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K.O. Nnamdie: First and foremost, I'm really grateful that we both found time to have this conversation, and congratulations on being honored at PAMM's Art + Soul Celebration. 

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Mashonda Tifrere: Thank you. It's such an honor because, speaking for myself, doing this kind of work, you don't ever really think about if people are paying attention to you. You just feel like it's something you have to do. So to know that people have been paying attention, and that they're recognizing me for my advocacy in philanthropy and service, it's really inspiring and empowering and makes me want to go even harder.

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KN: I know you’re committed to supporting living artists, such as my friends Nate Lewis and Tariku [Shiferaw], through your platforms Art Genesis and ArtLeadHER. Can you speak a bit about those platforms?

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MT: I founded ArtLeadHER in 2016. After speaking to a lot of women artists, I realized that they experienced the same biases that I did in the music industry. There was always a lack of women being shown; there were mostly men, and mostly white men. So I figured, you know what? I've got a great community of people that can afford to buy art from the music industry; I'm going to just start something and see how it goes. Since then, I've shown over 250 women artists worldwide, creating platforms for them to tell their stories, show their work, and build collector bases. Then something came over me in 2020 and made me think, I want to start showing Black men, too, so I founded Art Genesis, which is a platform for all artists. I actually showed Nate's work at the World Trade Center in 2022; I've shown Hugo McCloud and Derrick Adams and Ferrari Sheppard, and the list goes on.

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KN: I really commend you for seeing a need in your community and being able to meet that need in such a dynamic and creative way. Are there any new additions to your collection that you are excited about?

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MT: I just got two really incredible Gordon Parks works. And I had been waiting for a really long time to do that. One is from his Harlem series, and one is from his Alabama series.

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KN: Wow, congratulations. Are there any gallery programs in either Miami or outside of Miami that you have a strong interest in supporting?

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MT: Yes, I think Mindy Solomon is fabulous. I love her exhibitions, and I love the artists that she chooses to work with. She's also very supportive to young Black emerging artists. And I love Fountainhead, Kathryn [Mikesell] and Dan [Mikesell]; they're like mentors. I can call them and talk to them about anything.

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KN: They're amazing and so, so generous with everyone from resident artists to newly made friends visiting Miami for the first time. 

MT: The two of them are like my mom and dad art angels.

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KN: What do you look for in the artists that you collect and that you curate into exhibitions?

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MT: For the artists that I collect, I want to immediately feel some kind of connection to the work—that's the first thing. The second thing is, I really want to know if that artist is a good-hearted person because art carries so much energy. And my home, my personal space is so sacred to me. The same two things apply to the artists that I curate for my exhibitions. One other thing… I really try to look for artists that are heavily inspired, and deeply connected to their craft, and can speak about their technique because I'm going to be serious about platforming them, so we have to be on the same page.

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KN: Exactly. I always ask artists that are coming to me—as I am a gallerist and advisor and curator— if they have a 10 year plan. If they don't, I tell them, “Alright, well you really should think about having a life through this.”

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MT: That's a great way to put it because that's what it really boils down to.

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KN: Yeah, commitment is key. What are some of the themes within your collection?

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MT: I have a lot of women, and I'm super intentional about what I hang and where I hang it. I'll tell you about my bedroom. Do you know the artist Tawny Chatmon? She's amazing. I have two of her paintings of two little girls in there. She embellishes them so beautifully with gold, and their eyes are so endearing. It's the most peaceful thing to go to sleep and wake up to: to have these two beautiful little Black girls just looking at me. It's like they're looking into my soul, communicating with my inner child. 

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KN: Can you discuss the importance of buying Black art? How does it pertain to you as a Black woman to invest, and what is the impact that it makes?

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MT: For me, it's like, why wouldn't I? This is my culture. These are my people. I can relate to it. It's beautiful; it's rich, and I feel like we need to be collecting us. It's really that simple.

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KN: Yeah it really is, and it's always been the right thing to do. It was interesting, when 2020 came around and we saw a lot of museums and institutions try to do a full PR thing and try to dial things back…

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MT: You know, they wanted it to be a trend. It's not a trend; it's a real thing.