Lois was encouraged to draw by her family and teachers who admired the drawings and storybooks she created at a very early age. She was born in Boston in 1905 and attended a special Art High School where she received some important awards. While in high school she also took night courses at Boston’s Museum of Fine Art studying art and costume design. She is noted for her use of traditional African forms and shapes such as masks, with a mix of iconic African and Caribbean colors and patterns that blend a variety of African American themes. Though she was not a resident of New York, she is closely associated with the Harlem Renaissance community through a shared influence and close personal relationships with many of the painters and writers of the time. When Lois was 32 she awarded a fellowship to study in Paris. There she would find much success and felt more comfortable away from the discrimination she was faced with in the U.S. Her career excelled in textile design and she was warmly welcomed in the Parisian city.
Timeline – Lois Mailou Jones
Childhood and young adult, her
education, honors and awards.
Lois Mailou Jones Biography
American Art at the Phillips Collection
Biography for research
Textile Designs
Learn More | Vocabulary
Color Harmony ;n. a grouping of colors based on relationships between the colors on the color wheel.
Depth ;n. the amount of space in a picture.
Juxtapose ;v. to place side by side, especially for comparison or contrast.
Motif :n. a reoccurring element in an artistic work that creates a theme.
Pattern ;n. repetition of shapes, lines, colors, or forms.
Portrait;n. 1. a picture of a person’s face.
Space;n. the feeling of depth in a picture.
Shape;1. the outward form of an object defined by an outline.
Textile Design;n. designs for fabric intended as clothing, curtains, or sheets and blankets usually involving repeated elements in the design.
Ringgold and Lois Comparison
Learn More | The National Core Arts Standards
VA:Cr1.1.HSI Use multiple approaches to begin creative endeavors.
VA:Cr1.2.HSI Shape an artistic investigation of an aspect of present-day life using a contemporary practice of art or design.
VA:Cr2.1.HSI Engage in making a work of art or design without having a preconceived plan.
VA:Cr3.1.HSI Apply relevant criteria from traditional and contemporary cultural contexts to examine, reflect on, and plan revisions for works of art and design in progress.
Presenting
VA:Pr.4.1.HSI Analyze, select, and curate artifacts and/or artworks for presentation and preservation.
VA:Pr5.1.HSI Analyze and evaluate the reasons and ways an exhibition is presented.
Responding
VA:Re7.1.HSI Hypothesize ways in which art influences perception and understanding of human experiences.
VA:Re7.2.HSI Analyze how one’s understanding of the world is affected by experiencing visual imagery.
VA:Re9.1.HSI Establish relevant criteria in order to evaluate a work of art or collection of works.
Connecting
VA:Cn10.1.HSI Document the process of developing ideas from early stages to fully elaborated ideas.
VA:Cn11.1.HSI Describe how knowledge of culture, traditions, and history may influence personal responses to art.
http://www.loismailoujones.com
http://hrnazericlena.weebly.com/lois-mailou-jones.html
http://www.loismailoujones.com/about/timeline/childhood-education-1905-1927
http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artist/?id=5658
https://alchetron.com/Lois-Mailou-Jones-1341501-W
Good Morning America Interview with Lois Mailou Jones, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6aLZ222hKs
Wartts, Adrienne, Independent Historian, Jones, Lois Mailou, http://www.blackpast.org/aah/jones-lois-mailou-1905-1998