Mickalene Thomas
Rhinestone-encrusted portraits of Black women, staged in 1970s interiors she builds herself.
Mickalene Thomas was born in Camden, New Jersey in 1971, studied at Pratt and Yale, and photographs her sitters in elaborate interiors she constructs in the studio from wood panelling, patterned fabric and 1970s furniture. The paintings that follow are made in acrylic, oil and enamel with rhinestones set into the surface, restaging Manet, Courbet and Ingres with Black women as the subject and the odalisque pose reclaimed rather than repeated. She also works in photography, collage, film and full room installations, and has curated extensively.
Paintings lead the market and the rhinestone surfaces are their defining practical characteristic: the stones are adhered individually, they detach, and losses are conspicuous and awkward to repair invisibly, so condition inspection needs to be close and detailed. The works are also heavy and require appropriate hanging. Photographs exist in editions, usually small, at several sizes, and edition and print date must be established. Collages on paper are numerous. Institutional demand has driven this market strongly since the mid-2010s.
If you own a work by Mickalene Thomas
Send photographs and whatever paperwork came with it. The first question is what the work actually is — edition or unique, when, and in what condition — because everything else follows from the answer. A valuation costs nothing and commits you to nothing.
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Whitebank Fine Art is an art advisory and gallery, not an auction house, and is not affiliated with any auction house or with the artist, their estate or their representatives. This page describes the range we advise on. Nothing here is investment advice.