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Beverly McIver

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Beverly McIver
McIver teaches a class at Duke, 2015
Bornc. 1962
Greensboro, North Carolina
NationalityAmerican
Alma materPennsylvania State University North Carolina Central University
Known forPainting
AwardsEmerging Artist Grant Recipient, Durham Arts Council

Beverly McIver (born c. 1962) is a contemporary artist, mostly known for her self-portraits, who was born and raised in Greensboro, NC.[1][2][3][4][5] She is currently the Esbenshade Professor of the Practice of Art, Art History and Visual Studies at Duke University.[6][7]

Early life and education

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McIver was the youngest of three daughters and raised by a single mother who worked as a maid to support their family.[8] Her mother’s attention and resources were mostly focused on McIver’s older sister, Renee, who was mentally disabled.[9][10][11] Her autobiographical paintings are richly colorful and chronicles her life struggle with her African-American identity.[12]

While attending a predominantly white, affluent high school, McIver was a member of the school’s clowning club.[13] Performing in clown makeup and a wig empowered McIver: “As a clown…I was transformed, and in many ways more acceptable to society. No one cared that I was black or poor. I was embraced.”[14] Considering going to clown school for a brief period of time, McIver decided to pursue a career in art, earning her Master of Fine Art at Penn State University and an honorary doctorate from North Carolina Central University.[9] She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Painting and Drawing at North Carolina Central University.[15]

Career

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McIver's work explores personal identity, and besides self-portraiture she is known for painting the people who surround her in everyday life.[16][17] She received several honors for her work including a Guggenheim Fellowship and the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award. A documentary about McIver's life entitled Raising Renee was featured on HBO and nominated for an Emmy award.[18] In 2011, McIver was named "top ten in painting" for Art In America magazine.[19] McIver also has works featured in the Mint Museum of Art & the North Carolina Museum of Art. She's currently the Esbenshade Professor of the Practice of Visual Arts at Duke University. Her work is also in the Weatherspoon Art Museum in Greensboro, N.C., the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Art,[20] the NCCU Museum of Art, the Asheville Museum of Art, The Crocker Art Museum, The Cameron Art Museum, The Nasher Museum and the Nelson Fine Arts Museum on the campus of Arizona State University.[21] She won the Rome Prize in Visual Arts from the American Academy in Rome in 2017-2018.

Awards

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McIver was a 2014 Artist-in-Residence at the McColl Center for Art + Innovation in Charlotte, NC.[22] Her work has been reviewed in Art News, Art in America The New York Times and a host of local newspapers. She has received numerous grants and awards including the Anonymous Was A Woman Foundation grant, a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, a Radcliffe Fellowship from Harvard University, a Marie Walsh Sharpe Foundation award, a distinguished Alumni Award from Pennsylvania State University, a Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award and Creative Capital grant.[21]

References

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  1. ^ Sandler, Beverly McIver, 8
  2. ^ Johnson, Ken. "Art in Review: Beverly McIver". The New York Times. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  3. ^ Smith, Roberta. "Art in Review: Beverly McIver". The New York Times. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  4. ^ Green, Penelope. "Painting on a New Canvas". The New York Times. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  5. ^ "Beverly J McIver | Art, Art History & Visual Studies". aahvs.duke.edu. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
  6. ^ "The Beverly McIver Experience Comes to Duke | Duke University Arts". arts.duke.edu. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
  7. ^ Irving Sandler, Beverly McIver: Invisible Me (New York, NY: Kent Gallery New York City, 2006), 7-8
  8. ^ a b "Beverly McIver". Craven Art Gallery. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  9. ^ Jackson, Camille. "Beverly McIver: A Life That Is 'Good and Scary and Joyous'". Duke Today. Duke University. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  10. ^ Fernando, Dillon. "Prof. Bev McIver on painting, family and fragility". Duke Chronicle. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  11. ^ "Beverly McIver - 14 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy". www.artsy.net. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  12. ^ Kim Curry-Evans, Jennifer Dasal, and Beverly McIver, Reflections: Portraits by Beverly McIver (Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Museum of Art, 2011), 17-18
  13. ^ Kim Curry-Evans, The Many Faces of Beverly McIver (Sacramento, CA: 40 Acres Art Gallery, 2004), 13
  14. ^ North Carolina Arts Council visual artists fellowships, 1994-1995 : 8 artists from North Carolina. Raleigh, N.C.: City Gallery of Contemporary Art. 1995. ISBN 188544902X.
  15. ^ Plagens, Peter. "A Collection of Artists' Portraits, Car Engines and Notes to Self". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
  16. ^ "Beverly McIver: A Life That Is 'Good and Scary and Joyous'". Duke Today. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
  17. ^ "Raising Renee - WEST CITY FILMS". WEST CITY FILMS. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  18. ^ "2011's Top Ten in Painting - News - Art in America". www.artinamericamagazine.com. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  19. ^ "beverly mciver | Minneapolis Institute of Art". collections.artsmia.org. Retrieved February 6, 2021.
  20. ^ a b "Beverly J McIver | Art, Art History & Visual Studies". aahvs.duke.edu. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  21. ^ 20 years of Artists-In-Residence McColl Center
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