Migrants
April 18–August 7, 2026
“I’m living a life and I want to just say something about it. I’m not religious in the way of wanting to make testimonials but it amounts to the same thing. I’d like to say something while I’m here and the best way for me to say it is with painting and drawing.” —Benny Andrews
Michael Rosenfeld Gallery is pleased to present the gallery’s fourth solo exhibition celebrating Benny Andrews (1930–2006). Benny Andrews: Migrants features work from The Migrant Series, Andrews’ final body of work created between 2004 and his death in November 2006. In the series, Andrews traced three historical migration routes that connected to his own Black, White, and Cherokee ancestry: the 20th century Great Migration, the 1930s Dust Bowl exodus from the Great Plains, and the 19th century forced migration of Native Americans in what has become known as the Trail of Tears. By shedding light on human resilience amidst the injustices of history, the series exemplifies Andrews’ humanist approach as an artist who recognized the power of history and sought to leverage the past to inform the future.
The Migrant Series comprises ink drawings and collage paintings completed in Andrews’ signature rough collage technique, in which he incorporated textile fragments, thread, and his own repurposed painted canvas into his compositions. Andrews, a self-described “people’s painter,” depicted in The Migrant Series scenes of hardship, oppression, racism, strength, and hope. These timeless works speak to the political and the personal, the universal and individual, and the past, present, and future.
Scheduled to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the United States, Benny Andrews: Migrants highlights the enduring relevance of Andrews’ ambitious series and poignantly speaks to the political crisis we face as a nation. As he wrote in his journal: “To be honest, too much has been allowed to be swept under the rugs of history, and though the clock cannot be turned back, we can most certainly revisit those times and events in ways that the present and future good, decent and well-meaning people can draw from it to look at today and tomorrow’s problems under a more fair and honorable approach.”
To create The Migrant Series, Andrews set out to follow the routes traveled by the subjects of his series, driving along Route 66 as the Dust Bowl migrants had and following the path the Cherokee were forced to march by the American government in 1838. While Andrews had planned to focus his third trip on the Great Migration, he instead went to New Orleans in 2006 to witness the displacement caused by Hurricane Katrina. Andrews was deeply moved by his time in New Orleans and, though he never created any works in relation to Hurricane Katrina, he gained insight into the migrant experience that reinforced what he had learned in his previous travels.
Andrews’ journey is recorded both in a journal and in footage by documentary filmmaker Stanley Staniski. In collaboration with Andrews and Richard Gruber, then-director of the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Staniski created a seven-minute film that premiered at the debut exhibition of The Migrant Series, which opened in April 2004 at the Ogden. An extended version of the film will play in the gallery, revealing Andrews’ studio practice and his intention for this series. On the occasion of this exhibition and with the support of the Andrews-Humphrey Family Foundation, Staniski has been commissioned to complete a full-length film.
Benny Andrews: Migrants will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue featuring new scholarship and excerpts from the artist’s journal.
Michael Rosenfeld Gallery has represented the Benny Andrews Estate since 2009. The gallery has previously presented three solo exhibitions (2013; 2017; 2020) of the artist’s work and published three fully illustrated accompanying exhibition catalogues. Learn more.
