Pioneering artist Mike Henderson’s UC Davis solo show extended into July

The first American solo show of vanguard Black artist and UC Davis professor emeritus Mike Henderson’s works in 20 years, on view at the Davis campus since January, has been extended into July.

“Mike Henderson: Before the Fire, 1965-1985,” now showing through July 15 at UC Davis’ Manetti Shrem Museum of Art, 254 Old Davis Rd., Davis, showcases the works of the influential but underseen Henderson long believed lost in a 1980s studio fire.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Thursday and Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free.

Reviving Henderson’s lost work and restoring the pioneering Bay Area artist’s name to the contemporary canon contributed to the survey being “the most important collection in our history,” Rachel Teagle, Manetti Shrem founding director, said in January. “It is the largest we have ever undertaken, the most impressive we’ve ever achieved.”

Henderson, 79, was UC Davis’ first Black art professor when he joined the faculty in 1970. He taught alongside other UC Davis luminaries of the era including William T. Wiley and Wayne Thiebaud. For 43 years, until his retirement in 2012, he made his UC Davis studio “a place of shelter for artists of color.” He continues his work today in the Bay Area.

Audiences have responded to the exhibit with its raw look at racism and police violence, as well as his experimental film making and large-format “protest paintings,” Teagle said.

“By every measure, from attendance to visitor engagement, our community has responded with unprecedented interest and enthusiasm,” Teagle said. “We want to make sure as many people as possible are able to experience this profoundly moving and timely exhibition of Mike Henderson’s ground-breaking work.”

Commentary from Black artists, curators and academics accompany the exhibit. A May 25 program “Race, Representation and Museums: A Conversation,” is 4:30 p.m. at Manetti Shrem.

At the event, Joanne Jones-Rizzi, vice president of science, equity and education at the Science Museum of Minnesota; Porchia Moore, assistant professor of museum studies at the University of Florida; and Yolanda Moses, professor of anthropology, associate vice chancellor for diversity, equity and excellence, at UC Riverside, will discuss the lack of inclusivity and representation in the nation’s museums and the steps needed to address the art gap.