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African American Heritage Trail, Washington DC
Alma Thomas Residence
1530 15th Street, NW
Alma Thomas (1891-1978), the nationally acclaimed abstract artist, lived in this house from 1907 until her death. In 1924 she became the first graduate of Howard University's Art Department -- and possibly the first black woman in the country to earn a fine arts degree. Besides teaching art at Shaw Junior High School for 35 years, Thomas was active in the city's art community, particularly the Washington Color School and, with Lois Mailou Jones and the Barnett Aden Gallery, "The Little Paris Studio." Thomas's paintings are part of the permanent collections of the Hirshhorn Museum, National Museum of Women in the Arts, National Gallery of Art, and others. |