Morehouse College Gifted With $1 Million Art Collection Highlighting Black and LGBTQ Artists

Morehouse College received an amazing gift for the faculty and student body this week. The historically Black college was given a $1 million gift in the form of a prominent art collection from George Wells, founder and chairman of the Wells Group and Morehouse alumni. Wells’ goal was to use the collection to educate the Morehouse community about the art world and its history.

“I will always be grateful for my Morehouse education and the springboard it created for my career on Wall Street and in business, and I want to recognize that with this gift,” said Wells in a press statement sent to BLACK ENTERPRISE. “Owning multiple works by [Rashid] Johnson and [Mickalene] Thomas is like owning a piece of history to me. Their practices both showcase black resiliency and triumph but in different ways and from different gender perspectives. It is my hope that this gift will serve as an impetus for furthering racial equality within the art world during this exceptionally vulnerable time for Americans and race relations.”

The Wells Collections includes numerous paintings from prominent Black artists, representing the spectrum of identities, whose work focuses on racial inequality and identity. Some of the names include Rashid Johnson, Ivy Haldeman, McArthur Binion, and Amy Sherald.

Wells began the art collection with his husband, Manfred, in 2018, which now includes over 50 pieces of prized artwork from both emerging and established artists. The collection was meant to reflect works that talk about representations, cultural identity, social and political critiques.