Annual Studio Museum in Harlem Gala Celebrates Fall 2025 Opening of its New Building

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On Monday, October 27, leaders of the Studio Museum in Harlem welcomed more than seven hundred and fifty artists, cultural luminaries, civic leaders, philanthropists, and a host of prominent New Yorkers to the Museum’s annual Gala, held at The Glasshouse (660 12th Avenue, New York). In anticipation of the Museum’s public opening of its new home on 125th Street in Harlem on November 15, the annual event celebrated the Museum’s past, present, and future, and honored long-time Trustees Gordon J. Davis, Sandra Grymes, Arthur J. Humphrey Jr., George L. Knox, and the late Nancy L. Lane, who have collectively given two hundred and nineteen years of service to the Museum’s Board of Trustees.
Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator, said, “For almost sixty years, the Studio Museum in Harlem has been a champion of artists of African descent. Tonight, it stands on the threshold of its future, just days away from opening a new home; the Museum’s first ever purpose-built space. We have reached this moment thanks to, and inspired by, all of you who are here, and so many who have come before us.”
Golden greeted the guests and presented the annual Joyce Alexander Wein Artist Prize to Kenturah Davis.
Raymond J. McGuire, Chairman of the Board, said, “Tonight, let’s remember: this isn’t just about bricks and mortar, it’s about legacy and light. The Studio Museum has never simply reflected the times; it has helped shape them. And as we open our doors in a few weeks, we will do so with the same conviction that guided our founders in 1968: with faith in art, and faith in community.”
The Gala’s Lead Corporate Sponsor was Lafayette Square.
Attendees included notable figures such as Mara Brock Akil, Commissioner of Cultural Affairs for New York City, Laurie A. Cumbo, Maurice DuBois, Jay Ellis, Jon Gray, Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee, Usher Raymond, and Colson Whitehead.
Arts patrons, philanthropists, and luminaries included Dr. Elizabeth Alexander, President, Mellon Foundation; Linda Goode Bryant, Founder, Project EATS; Connie Butler, Director, MoMA PS1; Stuart Comer, Chief Curator of Media and Performance Art, The Museum of Modern Art; Adrienne Edwards, Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Programs, Whitney Museum of American Art; Anna Glass, CEO, Dance Theatre of Harlem; Ebony L. Haynes, Global Head of Curatorial Projects, David Zwirner; Sandra Jackson-Dumont, Curator and Educator; Christine Y. Kim, Britton Family Curator-at-Large, Tate T.. Lax, Curator, The Museum of Modern Art; Sade Lythcott, CEO, National Black Theatre; Courtney J. Martin, Executive Director, Robert Rauschenberg Foundation; Scott Rothkopf, Director, Whitney Museum of American Art; Legacy Russell, Executive Director and Chief Curator, The Kitchen; Antwaun Sargent, Director, Gagosian; Jack Shainman, Founder, Jack Shainman Gallery; Franklin Sirmans, Director, Pérez Art Museum Miami.
Artists included Nina Chanel Abney, Derrick Adams, Dawoud Bey, Sanford Biggers, Jordan Casteel, Karon Davis, Kenturah Davis, Derek Fordjour, Genevieve Gaignard, Cy Gavin, Chase Hall, Hugh Hayden, Rashid Johnson, Deana Lawson, Simone Leigh, Glenn Ligon, Tyler Mitchell, Naudline Pierre, Tschabalala Self, Gary Simmons, Lorna Simpson, Mickalene Thomas, Carrie Mae Weems, Cosmo Whyte, Amanda Williams, and Hank Willis Thomas.
Studio Museum Trustees included Raymond J. McGuire, Kathryn C. Chenault, Damien R. Dwin, Carol Sutton Lewis, Rodney M. Miller, Jacqueline L. Bradley, Nicholas Antoine, Laura Day Baker, Dr. Anita Blanchard, Peter A. Boyce II, Joan S. Davidson, Sandra Grymes, Natasha A. Holiday, Russell Hutchinson, Bernard I. Lumpkin, Dr. Amelia Ogunlesi, Holly Peterson, Victoria Rogers, Troy D. Taylor, Ann G. Tenenbaum, Reginald Van Lee, Lise Wilks, and Danielle Cooper Williams.
The Joyce Alexander Wein Artist Prize, one of the most significant awards given to individual artists in the United States today, was established in 2006 by jazz impresario, musician and philanthropist George Wein to honor his late wife, Joyce Alexander (1928–2005), a long-time Trustee of the Studio Museum and a woman whose life embodied a commitment to the power and possibilities of art and culture. Presented each year at the Studio Museum’s fall Gala, the award recognizes and honors the artistic achievements of an African American artist who demonstrates great innovation, promise, and creativity. Past winners include Derrick Adams, Diedrick Brackens, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Leonardo Drew, Torkwase Dyson, Samuel Levi Jones, Cy Gavin, Trenton Doyle Hancock, Leslie Hewitt, Jennie C. Jones, Caroline Kent, Simone Leigh, Glenn Ligon, Toyin Ojih Odutola, Robert Pruitt, Nadine Robinson, Gary Simmons, Lorna Simpson, and Cauleen Smith.
Kenturah Davis is an artist working between Los Angeles and Accra (Ghana). Deeply concerned with the intricacies of Black life, her work oscillates between various facets of portraiture and design. Using text as a point of departure, she explores the fundamental role that language has in shaping how we understand ourselves and the world around us. This manifests in a variety of forms including drawings, textiles, sculpture, and performances. Her work has been included in institutional exhibitions in Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe. Davis earned her BA from Occidental College and MFA Yale University School of Art. Davis was commissioned by LA Metro to create large-scale, site-specific works permanently installed on the new Crenshaw/LAX rail line. Davis was an inaugural artist fellow at NXTHVN in New Haven, CT.

The Studio Museum in Harlem is internationally known for its catalytic role in promoting the work of artists of African descent. The Studio Museum is preparing to open its new home at its longtime location on West 125th Street. Designed by Adjaye Associates with executive architect Cooper Robertson, the building—the first created expressly for the institution’s program—will enable the Studio Museum to better serve a growing and diverse audience, provide additional educational opportunities for people of all ages, expand its program of world-renowned exhibitions, effectively display its singular collection, and strengthen its trailblazing Artist-in-Residence program.