Photograph: Chris Focht

The Ed Wilson Project 

The exhibition

Ed Wilson: The Sculptor as Afro-humanist (Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 2023) will be the first retrospective of this under-recognized American artist in over fifty years. Wilson (1925–1996), longtime member of the studio faculty at Binghamton University, was an innovative sculptor whose practice evolved from figures carved from stone and wood in the 1950s toward large-scale
public artworks, often sited in educational institutions, beginning in the late 1960s. 

The exhibition, organized by Adjunct Curator and Professor of Art History, Tom McDonough, will feature Wilson’s surviving sculptural works and drawings, assembled from Museum holdings and loans from private and public collections nationwide, along with the artist’s personal archives held by his family. The exhibition will present the most comprehensive overview of his 45-year long career. A fully illustrated catalogue will be available and programming is planned throughout the course of the exhibition.

How you can help!

Interviews will be undertaken with family, former students, local residents and others close to Wilson or other professors of color, particularly in the earliest decades of the University. These oral histories will be published online and be accessible via the Museum website, and later incorporated into the University Archives. In this way, the exhibition will draw upon the voices and memories of those who knew Wilson the best: his family, alumni and the extended community in Binghamton, Baltimore and beyond.

If you knew Ed Wilson and would like to share an anecdote or story, please let us know. Email us at edwilsonproject@binghamton.edu, complete our online form or leave a message at 607-777-2981. You may be contacted for further information.

Thank you!

This project was made possible with a generous grant from the Terra Foundation for American Art.  The Terra Foundation, established in 1978 and having offices in Chicago and Paris, supports organizations and individuals locally and globally with the aim of fostering intercultural dialogues and encouraging transformative practices that expand narratives of American art, through the foundation’s grant program, collection and initiatives. We appreciate hearing from you and hope you will visit the exhibition in fall 2023!