Skip to content
    Back To Blog

    Renowned Artist Derek Fordjour '01 named Hirshorn 2023 NY Gala Artist honoree

    November 15, 2023

    On November 6, 2023, renowned artist Derek Fordjour '01 was recently named a Hirshorn 2023 New York Gala Artist honoree. 

    The New York Gala is a rare occasion in the art world where artists come together to celebrate each other while raising vital funds for the Hirshhorn Gallery’s year-round free education and art programs.

    2dd593b42846a9493fe71eda

    The Gala honored an extraordinary group of artists who share an appreciation for one another’s work and thinking. These artists represent the interdisciplinary, intergenerational, and global depth of the art world today.

    Fordjour earned a BA at Morehouse College before receiving an MEd in Arts Education at Harvard University and an MFA in painting at Hunter College. He was recently appointed the Alex Katz Chair at Cooper Union and serves as a Core Critic at the Yale School of Art. He was named the 2016 Sugarhill Museum Artist-in-Residence and the 2018 Deutsche Bank NYFA Fellow.

    Recently one-person exhibitions were held at the Pond Society, Shanghai; Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis; and Petzel Gallery, New York. His work is included in the collections of the Brooklyn Museum; Dallas Museum of Art; Guggenheim Museum, New York; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Pérez Art Museum Miami; The Studio Museum of Harlem, New York; and Whitney Museum, New York among others. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of New York commissioned Fordjour to create a series of mosaics for Manhattan’s 145th Street subway station which were unveiled in 2018.

    Other posts you might be interested in

    View All Posts
    October 2, 2023 | Alumni Achievement

    Artist Sanford Biggers '92 remixes centuries of Art History in a slew of new solo shows this Fall

    Acclaimed artist Sanford Biggers '92 is currently the subject of solo shows at Marianne Boesky in New York and Monique Meloche Gallery in Chicago, and he will also debut... Read More
    December 2, 2024 | Student Success

    Meet Amare Williams '27, The Artist Transforming Morehouse, One Mural at a Time

    At Morehouse College, our students inspire us daily with their brilliance, creativity, and commitment to excellence. Among them is Amare Williams, a standout member of the... Read More
    December 5, 2023 | Alumni Achievement

    Acclaimed Artist Derek Fordjour '01 Interviewed By Comedian Trevor Noah For Interview Magazine

    To Derek Fordjour '01, the stakes are high in art. “There are a lot of paintings in the world,” he remembers a graduate school professor telling him. “Why do we need another... Read More