the edward mitchell bannister national exhibition

The Providence Art Club’s

Edward Mitchell Bannister National Exhibition

Celebrating BIPOC Artists

Juried by Independent Curator and Gallerist Krista Scenna

Call for Entries:

Each year, the Providence Art Club welcomes artists from across the country to submit work for an open exhibition. In 2023, the Art Club is hosting a series of exhibitions and programs to celebrate founding member Edward Mitchell Bannister (1828-1901) in the lead up to the unveiling of a public sculpture in his honor in the fall of 2023.

Bannister was one of the most successful African American artists of his generation and one of the most influential individuals in the Art Club’s founding in 1880. The recipient of a top award in the 1876 Philadelphia Exposition, Bannister was a foundational force in the establishment of the Art Club. A talented painter in the Tonalist mode, Bannister was also a respected art critic and, along with his wife Christiana, a beloved member of the Providence community. This year’s Providence Art Club National Exhibition is dedicated to Bannister and will celebrate the best in contemporary art by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) makers from throughout the United States working in any theme, style, or media.

Founded in 1880, the Providence Art Club is one of the oldest arts organizations in the nation and the first such Club to be co-founded by women and men. Recognized as one of the top three galleries in Rhode Island by the Providence Journal, the Art Club received a coveted Best of Rhode Island Award for Best Art Gallery in Providence for the last four years consecutively. Entering its 143rd year, the Club looks forward to sharing the best in current visual arts by BIPOC artists from throughout the country with its unique audience in the Northeast.