The National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) in Washington, D.C., will present "Tawny Chatmon: Sanctuaries of Truth, Dissolution of Lies," a solo exhibition of over 25 large-scale photographs by artist Tawny Chatmon, running from October 15, 2025, to March 8, 2026. The works, drawn from series dating from 2019 to the present, blend photography with hand-applied paint, gold leaf, and precious materials, depicting Black children and families in gilded frames inspired by Gustav Klimt and medieval icons. This is Chatmon's first museum exhibition in the nation's capital.
The exhibition matters because it confronts the historical exclusion of Black bodies from Western art by reimagining classical art history through a contemporary, Afrocentric lens. Chatmon's work celebrates Black childhood, resistance, and self-determination, using her own family as models to assert the sacred value of Black identity. The show underscores NMWA's commitment to spotlighting emerging artists early in their careers, and it contributes to ongoing cultural conversations about representation, visual narrative, and the redemptive power of art.