Thanks to a major corporate gift from Quad City Bank & Trust, the Figge Art Museum will add “The Everyday” by artist Latoya Hobbs to its growing permanent collection. The gift was inspired by the Figge’s Diversity and Equity Art Fund, established last year to combat the systemic inequality in the art world.
“The Everyday” is part of Hobbs’s “Salt of the Earth” series, which centers “modern matriarchs” and reinforces the artist’s belief that Black women are the preservers of their families, communities, and culture, according to a Thursday release from the Figge.
“On the heels of launching the Figge’s new Diversity and Equity Art Fund this past summer, this work is the perfect addition to our collection,” said Figge Executive Director and CEO Michelle Hargrave. “We are honored that Quad City Bank & Trust believes in the Figge’s mission and our efforts to make the museum’s collection more representative of all the people who come to engage with it.”
“The Everyday” is a powerful self-portrait that depicts Hobbs along with her two young, homeschooled sons. A reference to the work of the abstract artist Alma Thomas can be seen in the background, helping situate Hobbs’s work in a larger tradition of female African American art, the museum release said.
“Art is such a powerful tool that can inspire, uplift and challenge us to see things from different viewpoints. I am so honored to have my work represented in the Figge’s collection to be shared and experienced by its community members and patrons,” Hobbs said in the release, who thanked Hargrave, Figge Director of Acquisitions and Collections Andrew Wallace, the museum board and the acquisition committee “for valuing my work and to Quad City Bank & Trust for their financial support in this process.”
Hobbs’s work is gaining traction in the art world and is currently being featured at museums and galleries in cities across the country, from Minneapolis to Baltimore.
Her artwork intends to showcase a more balanced perception of womanhood that dismantles stereotypes. That intention comes through in The Everyday’s deceptively simple emotional palette, while its medium—acrylic and collage on canvas—bears out Hobbs’s mixed-media practice, marrying painting with other artforms.
“Quad City Bank & Trust is pleased to support the Figge’s initiative to promote and acquire art from diverse artists for the enjoyment of our community,” said Quad City Bank & Trust CEO John Anderson. “The Everyday is a relatable work that elevates Black women and their families, and we are thrilled that this work will help enrich the Figge’s collection for years to come.”
“The Everyday” is now on view in Gallery 210 at the Figge, 225 W. 2nd St., Davenport.
Hobbs is an artist, wife, and mother of two from Little Rock, Ark., who is currently living and working in Baltimore. She received her BA in Painting from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and MFA in Printmaking from Purdue University. Latoya’s work deals with figurative imagery that addresses the ideas of beauty, cultural identity, and womanhood as they relate to women in the African Diaspora.
The Figge’s Diversity and Equity Art Fund is exclusively dedicated to the acquisition and preservation of artworks for the Figge’s permanent collection that represent artists from underserved and marginalized groups.
The underserved and marginalized groups that this fund will impact are Black artists, artists of African, Native American, Hispanic, Latinx, Asian, Pacific Islander, Indigenous and Middle Eastern descent as well as works from women, LBGTQA+, and any other artists that are subsequently identified as marginalized, oppressed, or underrepresented in the museum’s permanent collection. To contribute to this fund, visit .
