1936-2003
Works in the Collection
Biography
Mildred Thompson (b. 1936) was an abstract artist from Jacksonville, Florida. She earned her BA at Howard University in 1957 and continued her studies at the Skowhegan School, earned a Max Beckmann Scholarship to study at the Brooklyn Museum School, and Germany’s Art Academy of Hamburg (Hochschule für bildende Künste). Thompson spent much of her career in Germany due to racial and gender discrimination in the US, returning to the US in the 1970s. Her works featured vibrant colors, scientific and cosmological inspirations Thompson held many residencies such as at Howard University, Spelman College, and the Atlanta College of Art. Her work, is housed in major collections like MoMA, the Smithsonian, and the Guggenheim. She was an Associate Editor at Art Papers Magazine and participated in exhibitions, including the Berlin Biennale and Dakar Biennale in Senegal (1992). Thompson passed in Atlanta, GA in 2003.