Dale Brockman Davis


Dale Brockman Davis is an American visual artist, gallerist and educator based in Los Angeles. He was best known for his assemblage sculpture and ceramic work that addresses themes of African American history and music, especially jazz. Along with his brother, artist Alonzo Davis, he co-founded Brockman Gallery in Leimert Park. Through the gallery and his broader community work, Davis became an important promoter of African-American artists in Los Angeles.

Early life and education

Davis was born on November 11, 1945, in Tuskegee, Alabama. He moved to Los Angeles in 1956.
He studied at Los Angeles City College, before earning his B.F.A. at the University of Southern California. There he studied with noted ceramist F. Carlton Ball.
He would eventually move beyond vessels and other traditional ceramic forms, instead focusing on sculpture. He was inspired by assemblage art scene that emerged in Los Angeles's African-American community following the Watts Rebellion of 1965. He did graduate work towards a M.F.A. degree at the University of California, Los Angeles but stopped the program after encountering resistance towards his assemblage style.
Davis worked as an art teacher and chairman of the art department at Dorsey High School.

Awards

Galleries

Gallery shows include:
  • Gallery Negra
  • Bob Jefferson Gallery, Oakland
  • Ankrum Gallery, Los Angeles
  • Brockman Gallery, Los Angeles

Group exhibitions

He has appeared in many exhibitions, including:California Black Craftsmen, Mills College Art Gallery, 1970Eleven from California, Studio Museum in Harem, 1972Los Angeles 1972: A Panorama of Black Artists, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1972Collage and Assemblage, Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art, 1975Black Art: The LA Connection, Los Angeles Convention Center, 1982Artists Teachers, Museum of African American Art, Santa Monica, 1983Watts: Art and Social Change in Los Angeles, Haggerty Museum of Art, Marquette University, 2003L.A. Object and David Hammons Body Prints, Tilton Gallery, 2006Distinctly Los Angeles: An African American Perspective, M. Hanks Gallery, Santa Monica, 2009Now Dig This! Art & Black Los Angeles, 1960-1980, Hammer Museum, 2011Places of Validation, California African American Museum, 2011Diverted Destruction 6, California African American Museum and Loft at Liz's, 2013
  • New Digs/Old Finds: Dale Davis, Assemblage Sculptures, Loft2, San Pedro, 2019