Diggs Gallery

Diggs Gallery Diggs Gallery is the cultural center at Winston-Salem State University. All exhibitions are free and open to the public. We look forward to your visit!

Diggs Gallery is named for James Thackeray "T" Diggs, Jr. (1915-1989), a 1934 graduate of Winston-Salem State, a painter and a former WSSU art professor for more than 40 years. Professor Diggs was a philosopher, educator and artist who always stressed the importance of pure art. "Art is a means of expressing, creating, doing your own thing, and being liberated." This was his philosophy for 45 year

s, so much so that he practiced what he preached; designed the buildings of WSSU's campus, enjoying the company of his colleagues, being surrounded by students looking for a better technique, and producing drawings, prints and paintings for pleasure. James Gordon Hanes, Jr. was born on March 3, 1916, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to James Gordon Hanes Sr. and Emmie Drewry Hanes. His family was well-established in the Winston-Salem community. His father was the founder, president and chairman of the Board of the Hanes Hosiery Co. and its successor, Hanes Corp. Gordon Hanes, Jr., graduated from Woodberry Forest School in 1933, and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1937 from Yale University. He went on to study Business Administration at Pace College and graduated in 1939. He married Helen Greever Copenhaver on August 30, 1941 and had three children, James Gordon Hanes, III, Eldridge C. Hanes, and Margaret Drewry Hanes. His interest in art brought him to James Thackery Diggs, Jr. and a friendship was born which remained strong until Professor Diggs death in 1989. Gordon Hanes remembered that friendship in the creation of Diggs Gallery in 1989. The gallery first opened its doors to the public on October 2, 1990. The gallery is the major cultural center at Winston-Salem State University and offers one of the largest exhibition spaces dedicated to the arts of Africa and the African Diaspora in North Carolina. Exhibitions, publications and programs address abroad range of artistic expression, with special concentration on African-American and regional art. Since Diggs Gallery opened in 1990, Winston-Salem State University has witnessed tremendous cultural growth and, through gifts and acquisitions, has amassed a permanent art collection. Composed of the Sculpture Garden, the Biggers Murals and a number of paintings, prints and sculptures, the collection highlights African and African-American art. Through gifts by the late Gordon Hanes Jr., the gallery also houses an impressive collection of works on paper by well-known European and American artists such as; Jean Francois Millet, Joan Miro, and Robert Rauchenberg. An art tour of our campus offers a substantial introduction to, or more advanced study of, contemporary African-American art. WSSU seeks to make a significant contribution to the cultural life of its students, to the citizens of this region and to visitors to our community. We invite you to visit one of the region's oldest educational institutions for a very special cultural experience!

Please join us for our opening reception this Thursday, October 24th from 5pm - 7pm. We hope to see you soon!Photograph ...
10/22/2019

Please join us for our opening reception this Thursday, October 24th from 5pm - 7pm. We hope to see you soon!

Photograph - Chi Modu, Tupac Shakur, 1993

If you're in the North Carolina area, check out our current exhibitions! Click the link below to view some of the artwor...
08/07/2019

If you're in the North Carolina area, check out our current exhibitions! Click the link below to view some of the artwork!

This gallery hosted by SmugMug; your photos look better here.

CHI MODU, UNCATEGORIZED, ON VIEW JULY 5TH - NOVEMBER 22, 2019Photograph courtesy of Chi Moduhttp://www.chimodu.com
08/06/2019

CHI MODU, UNCATEGORIZED, ON VIEW JULY 5TH - NOVEMBER 22, 2019

Photograph courtesy of Chi Modu
http://www.chimodu.com

ON VIEW JULY 5 - NOVEMBER 22, 2019, "UKNOWHOWWEDU", FEATURING IONA ROZEAL BROWN, LAKELA BROWN, GEORGIE NAKIMA, & STEPHAN...
08/06/2019

ON VIEW JULY 5 - NOVEMBER 22, 2019, "UKNOWHOWWEDU", FEATURING IONA ROZEAL BROWN,
LAKELA BROWN, GEORGIE NAKIMA, & STEPHANIE J. WOODS!

Photograph courtesy of Spelman College Museum of Fine Arts

a3 blackface #65, 2003 Acrylic on paper
85 x 59 inches
Collection of Spelman College, Atlanta, GA

As the Director of the Diggs Gallery at Winston-Salem State University, I am happy to announce that we received the HBCU...
08/06/2019

As the Director of the Diggs Gallery at Winston-Salem State University, I am happy to announce that we received the HBCU Digest Award for the "Best Fine Arts Program for the Diggs Gallery!" "According to HBCU Digest, The HBCU Awards is the first and only national awards ceremony honoring individual and institutional achievement at historically Black colleges and universities throughout the country."

https://www.wssu.edu/about/news/articles/2019/08/social-work,-diggs-gallery-win-2019-hbcu-awards.html

04/04/2019

Please join us on Friday, April 5th for the opening of "TENACIOUS COLORS: 2019 Senior Thesis Art Exhibition" from 5pm - 7pm!

Congratulations to our Diggs Gallery Director, Endia Beal, who was honored by Governor Roy Cooper, the N.C. African Ame...
02/17/2019

Congratulations to our Diggs Gallery Director, Endia Beal, who was honored by Governor Roy Cooper, the N.C. African American Heritage Commission and the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources for her contributions to the arts of North Carolina. Click the link below to read more!

In celebration of Black History Month, Governor Roy Cooper and First Lady Kristin Cooper will honor African American musicians and artists from North Carolina at a reception at the Executive Mansion beginning at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 14.

Please join us on Thursday, February 7th from 5pm - 7pm for the opening of "Our Faculty. Our Staff. An Exhibition of Art...
02/06/2019

Please join us on Thursday, February 7th from 5pm - 7pm for the opening of "Our Faculty. Our Staff. An Exhibition of Artistic Voices from Winston-Salem State University."

Address

601 S Martin Luther King Jr Drive
Winston-Salem, NC
27101

Opening Hours

Tuesday 11am - 5pm
Wednesday 11am - 5pm
Thursday 11am - 5pm
Friday 11am - 5pm
Saturday 11am - 5pm

Telephone

+13367502458

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Diggs Gallery posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category