Wanda D. Ewing Commission
Supporting Women Artists of the African Diaspora
Each year, the Wanda D. Ewing Commission supports the production and presentation of new work by a woman artist of the African diaspora. Wanda Denise Ewing (1970–2013), the Omaha artist for whom The Union's gallery and Commission are named, was influenced by folk-art aesthetics, craft traditions, and the limited depictions of Black women in Western art history and popular culture. Through her art, she celebrated Black bodies and explored the complex interplay of race, gender, and sexuality. The commission was established to carry forth Ewing’s legacy and to create a vital cultural opportunity for Greater Omaha, where narratives of women of color are too often absent from the arts discourse.
Recipients of the Commission are invited to create new work for a solo exhibition and develop a companion educational program or project. In the past, these have included a limited-edition coloring book, workshops for the children and young adults participating in The Union's Youth programming, and a master class for professional and developing artists in the Omaha area.
Past Wanda D. Ewing Commission Recipients
2019 - Vanessa German, sometimes.we.cannot.be.with.our.bodies.
2018 - Zoë Charlton, The Ipseity Project
2017 - Alexandria Smith, Try a Little Tenderness
