New Artwork Installation
Ms. Sheila Johnson, Founder and CEO of Salamander Collection, grew up surrounded by the arts. Before becoming an entrepreneur, she was a professional violinist and music educator. Using her fine arts, photography and design background, she has cultivated a new art collection for Salamander Washington DC, which reflects her taste, interests and philosophies.
Art Space NYC
Front Desk
-------
Clay, plaster, acrylic, wooden frame. Six sections
Upon check in, guests are greeted with a bas relief art behind the front desk designed by ART SPACE NYC, a welcoming moment that reflects the marble majesty of D.C.'s iconic monuments. Bas relief or "low relief" is a sculptural technique in which the design is only slightly raised above the flattened surface. The artist collective chose to use Classical Greek art as inspiration, which mirrors the style of national monuments and local architecture.
Framed by cherry blossoms and dogwood (Virginia's state flower), the work includes the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, and the national monument to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The art depicts Dr. King holding his "I Have a Dream" speech. The horses on the left-hand side reflect love for equine sport and reference the Salamander's roots in Middleburg, Virginia, which is revered horse country. As a proud member of the Trust for the National Mall, Ms. Johnson was honored to support the construction of a state-of-the-art stable for the equine division of the National Park Service near the Washington Monument. Created in six sections before being united during installation, the process originated with an initial sketch before being refined multiple times. It was then sculpted into clay before being cast into plaster held by an acrylic mold and wooden frame, designed to the same specifications of the curved wall behind the front desk. The remaining pieces of art in Salamander DC's newly enhanced living room and lounge areas feature works by Black American artists who have made indelible impacts on the cultural fabric of D.C. and beyond.
Delita Martin
Night Communion, 2022
-------
60" x 40"
Unique Relief print Paper, charcoal, acrylic, hand stitching
DELITA MARTIN, while based in Texas, is inspired by iconic Black women artists from the D.C. area and was the subject of an exhibition at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in 2020. One of her major influences is Elizabeth Catlett (1915 – 2012), an artist born and raised in Washington, D.C., who graduated with honors from Howard University. One of Catlett's teachers and mentors was Lois Mailou Jones, whose works are displayed in the bar. Night Communion, which hangs off the main lobby, incorporates collage and stitching. This technique of "piecing together" is linked to Martin's personal history and the influence of her grandmother, who taught her how to quilt. This work celebrates the generations of Black women who have often been marginalized, and Martin describes her practice as "an act of prayer."
Sam Gilliam
Dogon II, 2005
Lobby
22-1/4" x 59"
Unique Relief Intaglio Lithograph
The lavender-colored, multi-layered work in the lobby seating area is by SAM GILLIAM, D.C.'s most well-known artist. Gilliam, who died in 2022, was an internationally known artist and an influential local arts educator. Born in Mississippi and raised in Kentucky, he spent his adult life in Washington, D.C., known as the "dean" of the city's arts community. A United States Army veteran, he received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Louisville. Gilliam was associated with the Washington Color School, an important historical movement that developed a form of abstraction called color-field painting in the 1950s and 1960s. He later moved beyond that style, introducing unique and groundbreaking uses of canvas, texture, pattern, and color. In 1972, Gilliam became the first African American artist to represent the United States in an exhibition at the esteemed Venice Biennale. As a subject of many exhibitions, his work is in major private and museum collections worldwide. Dogon II is part of a series of works inspired by the West African community in Mali, a society known to have studied astronomy and the cosmos long before the invention of telescopes and other advanced technologies.
Lois Mailou Jones
Blue Jug, 1934
Bar
16-1/2" x 11-1/4"
Pencil and Pastel on Paper
Brown Jug, 1934
Bar
17" x 11"
Pencil and Pastel on Paper
LOIS MAILOU JONES' (1905 – 1998) two pastel works from the 1930s hang next to the bar. For over half a century, Mailou Jones was a powerhouse female leader in the D.C. cultural community and an important figure in American art history. Mailou Jones received her undergraduate degree from Boston's School of the Museum of Fine Arts and her graduate degree from the Design Art School. She was a part of the Harlem Renaissance movement in New York but made her home in Washington, D.C., where she taught art-making at Howard University for over 50 years. Mailou Jones was an impactful mentor and teacher, influencing generations of students and artists. She felt her most significant contribution to the art world was "proof of the talent of Black artists." Mailou Jones' work was the focus of exhibitions at the National Museum of Women in the Arts and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and is in many collections worldwide. She continued to produce work until her death at age 92.