Black History Month: Mildred Thompson

by Mildred Thompson

Mildred Thompson was an African-American artist who explored different art techniques, such as painting, photography, printmaking, and sculpture. She was also a writer and a teacher in a variety of fields.

As a black woman, she found it hard to be accepted both artistically and socially in most cosmopolitan American cities. She was refused shows and exhibitions she believed she deserved. She got more lucky in Germany, where she lived for 10 years. When she came back to the U.S. in 1975, she found that the social climate had improved and she was able to overcome many of the obstacles she had encountered at the beginning of her career.

Many critics believe her art is inspired in West African textiles, Islamic architecture, German Expressionism, jazz and European music, as well as her readings in astronomy, spiritualism, and metaphysics. Because of her subjects of study, her drawings are full of geometric shapes. Her abstract artworks represent the patterns of sound and music, the earth, atmosphere, the sun and skies filled with energetic elements. The use of vibrant colors in her work makes it appear that she was trying to make unseen energy visible.