Little Paris Studio Group

The Little Paris Studio Group: Friendship, Community and Practice in Mid-Century Washington, D.C.

The Little Paris Studio Group was formed by artists Loïs Mailou Jones and Céline Tabary, modeled after their salon experiences in Paris. They set up a space in Jones’ attic in Washington DC for weekly meetings. A place for these artists to nurture a continued artistic practice, many of whom were full-time educators or government workers.

Little Paris Group in Loïs Jones’ studio, 1948. Alma Thomas papers, circa 1894-2001. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution; inscribed Kay-Dee Photo.

The archival photo above is special for a lot of reasons. It documents an active artistic community in Washington DC around 1950. Every person but one is named in the caption (though not all in the correct order).

The Little Paris Studio Group was formed by artists Loïs Mailou Jones and Céline Tabary. modeled after their salon experiences in Paris. They set up a space in Jones’ attic in Washington DC for weekly meetings. A place for these artists to nurture a continued artistic practice, many of whom were full-time educators or government workers.

Several of this group became well-known, including Alma Thomas. (second from right in profile), whose papers house this photo, while others remain obscured.

Loïs Mailou Jones and Céline Tabary

A 60 year friendship

Loïs Mailou Jones and Céline Tabary met in Paris in 1937 while both were studying at the Académie Julian. They were friends until Tabary’s death in 1993. During all the years between they were constantly working and often sharing studio space.

Loïs Mailou Jones and Céline Tabary in Jones’ studio in Paris, ca. 1938. Photo by Marc Vaux, Paris. Image © Centre Pompidou, Bibliothèque Kandinsky, Fonds Marc Vaux, MV 8421.

Loïs Mailou Jones

(1905-1998)

Loïs Mailou Jones and Céline Tabary (obscured by easel) in Jones’ studio in Paris, ca. 1938. Photo by Marc Vaux, Paris. Image © Centre Pompidou, Bibliothèque Kandinsky, Fonds Marc Vaux, MV 8421.

As we look at various 20th century artists and their legacies, we are interested in connecting archival pieces in order to share a more expanded story. It is also vital to celebrate the incredible work done over time to preserve these legacies.

Jones is an artist whose legacy has had scholarly attention, including books by both Tritobia Hayes Benjamin and Rebecca VanDiver. Her papers are housed at Howard University where she was on the faculty for almost 50 years.

To read more about Céline Tabary scroll on…

Céline Tabary

(1908-1993)

Céline Tabary, Unknown photographer; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC, USA. Library and Research Center, Archives on Women Artists.

Céline Tabary was visiting Loïs Mailou Jones in Washington DC when war broke out between France and Germany in 1939 and she was unable to return home. Tabary remained in the US even after the end of WWII, although she eventually returned to France. She had strong ties not only with Jones, but also other members of the Little Paris Group, including Alma Thomas.

Very little has been written about Tabary, who falls through the cracks for several reasons. French, she spent a good portion of her working life in the US, including teaching art at Howard University, so she does not fit neatly in either national canon. She is most associated with a Black artists’ collective which itself has not received enough attention, and she is the only known white artist in the group.

Currently the only known painting by Tabary in a US public collection is held at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Céline M. Tabary, Terrasse de café, Paris, 1950, oil on canvas; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Corinne Mitchell.

Projected publication 2026.

Our volume documents this important collective, the locations where they worked and exhibited, and the relationships between the artists. It also includes short biographies of each of the 39 artists – that we know of so far! They are all listed below.

Artists in the Little Paris Studio Group

Velma Boone Alexander

Elting O. Holmes Banks

S. Bruce Brown

Robert Bruce [guest artist, 1952]

Barbara Buckner Gwaltney

Doris Butts

Dorothy Moten Crawford

Robert A. Daniel [guest artist, 1954]

Richard Dempsey [guest artist, 1951]

Harry Friedman

Elizabeth Parr Gathings

Laertes Gillis

Frances Moore Grant

Edith (Louise) Harris

Earl J. Hooks

Alberta Horton

James W. Jones

Loïs Mailou Jones

Barbara Linger Stewart

Osceola Madden

Georgia Mills Jessup

Joseph Murdock

Mildred Teixeira Nash

Russell Nesbit [model]

William Hope Payne

Delilah Williams Pierce

Donald H. Roberts

Lucille (Malkia) Roberts

Betty Shadd Graine

Dr. Alonzo DeGrate Smith

Céline Tabary

Alma W. Thomas

Charles A. Thompson

Desdemona Wade Morales

William E. Weir

Frank West, Jr.

Marion Sumner Westmoreland

Elizabeth Bennett Williamson

Carolyn Evans Wright

Artist names are found in at least one of the following:

1st Annual Exhibition (1951) [AAA, Alma Thomas papers, Box 2, Folder 40; AAA, Richard Dempsey papers, Box 2, Folder 47]

2nd Annual Exhibition (1952) [DC History Center E0212]

4th Annual Exhibition (1954) [Howard University, Loïs Mailou Jones papers, Box 215-16, Folder 51]

Photo of “Little Paris Group” (likely 1950-51) [dated 1948 in AAA, Alma Thomas papers, Box 2, Folder 40]

“Lois Mailou Jones and Her Former Students 1930-1995: An American Legacy.” (1995 catalogue) includes note on the Little Paris Studio group & notation of some of the artists involved [Howard University, Loïs Mailou Jones papers, Box 215-1, Folder 16]

NOT YET FOUND: 3rd Annual Exhibition (1953) [reference exists in 8 June 1953 letter from Tabary to LMJ, Howard University, Loïs Mailou Jones papers, Box 215-10, Folder 2]