Erika Holmquist-Wall, chief curator of the Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, discussed the museum's new exhibition "Brilliant Exiles: American Women in Paris, 1900-1939" in a televised interview. The show, on loan from the Smithsonian Institution's National Portrait Gallery, features nearly 80 works including paintings, photographs, works on paper, and sculptures that portray American women who moved to Paris during the early 20th century to pursue careers in the arts. The exhibition includes portraits of figures such as singer Ethel Waters, and offers interactive elements like a participatory portrait-making room and curated Spotify playlists.
The exhibition matters because it highlights a transformative period when Paris was the epicenter of the avant-garde art world, and American women—often overlooked in art history—found the freedom to build careers as artists, performers, writers, and publishers. By bringing these works from institutions across the country to a regional museum, the Speed Art Museum provides a rare opportunity for local audiences to engage with a major loan exhibition that centers on women's empowerment and cultural migration. The show also underscores the ongoing importance of museums in making art accessible, with free admission on Sundays and docent-led tours available.