AMINAH ROBINSON’S HOME

RENOVATIONS BEGIN ON AMINAH ROBINSON’S HOME AMINAH ROBINSON’S FORMER HOME TO BE FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND RESIDENCY PROGRAM

CMA is proud to announce that renovations to the home/studio of artist Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson are under way. For more than 40 years, Robinson’s life and work centered around her residence on Sunbury Road in the Shepard neighborhood on Columbus’s East Side. To honor her legacy, the home will be used as an artist residence following the completion of renovations. These renovations have been carefully undertaken to preserve the artist’s spirit and, at the same time, create a warm, comfortable environment for artist residents. The Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson Residency is a rare—if not the only—program set in the former home of an African American artist, which is available solely to African American artists.

The Columbus Foundation provided the visionary funds for renovation that made the concept a reality. Updates to the house include new wiring and plumbing on the interior and new fences, paint, and repair to the exterior. Preservation and conservation of the mosaic tile floor Robinson created in the kitchen, her second floor writing room, the carved and painted front doors, and the bottle garden she carefully “planted” and tended will reflect the artistry which permeated her home on the inside and outside.

With the leadership of CMA executive director Nannette Maciejunes, CMA curators Carole Genshaft and Deidre Hamlar, and deputy director Rod Bouc, the Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson Legacy Project team worked diligently to select renovation partners that would respect and preserve the spirit of the artist. The team completing the work on Robinson’s home includes Aaron McDaniel, Blueprint Investments, LLC, Real Estate Development Company; Brenda Parker, The Columbus Architectural Studio; and Mark Corna, retired CEO of Corna Kokosing Construction Company and Mindy Corna, design consultant.

Members of the greater museum family were instrumental in launching the project. Early on, Dr. Wayne P. Lawson helped shape the artist residency named for Aminah, and the Greater Columbus Arts Council (Arts Council) became a partner in organizing it. Larry James championed this project from its inception and encouraged community involvement in fundraising efforts.

Ownership of Robinson’s home passed to CMA through the artist’s bequest following her death in 2015. Since that time, the Museum has removed, photographed, documented, conserved, and safely stored items from the home studio, including all works of art, the artist’s library, archives, and furnishings. “Aminah believed that her journey and the Museum’s journey were intertwined,” observed Maciejunes. “She would be proud that her home will be used as a living and working space for artists and that the connection between her and the Museum will endure.”