Past Talks & More | Artist Talks

Nanette Carter and George N’Namdi in Conversation

Nanette Carter with her artwork. She has light-brown skin, dark hair, and wears a fedora, glasses, a black outfit, a gold cuff, and rings.

Join exhibiting artist Nanette Carter as she returns to the Wex for a conversation with art dealer and Ohio State alumnus George N’Namdi.

The work of Nanette Carter, the artist behind the thought-provoking exhibition Nanette Carter: Afro Sentinels—on view through January 11, 2026—bears the influences of many artistic, art historical, and cultural expressions, from quilt making and jazz to Abstract Expressionism, Japanese prints, and Russian Constructivism. It also connects her to the profound history of abstraction by African American artists.

Carter embarked on her early career with the support of collectors and gallerists like N’Namdi, who owned a gallery in downtown Columbus. Both born in Columbus, Carter and N’Namdi visit the Wex to reflect on their experiences working together in the 1970s.

Hear from Carter and N’Namdi about their ongoing collaborations and the importance of building a network as emerging professionals in the arts. The talk is moderated by Ohio State Department of Art faculty Britny Wainwright. A Q&A follows the conversation.

IMAGE CAPTION
Nanette Carter in her studio, 2024. Courtesy of Berry Campbell, New York. Photo and © Adam Reich.

More about the artist

Nanette Carter

Nanette Carter (b. 1954, Columbus, Ohio) has exhibited her work nationally and internationally since the mid-1970s. Carter earned her MFA from Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, in 1978 and recently retired after 20 years of teaching there. She has received many grants, fellowships, and awards, including the Anonymous Was a Woman award. Carter’s work has been featured in exhibitions such as African-American Artists & Abstraction (2014) in Havana, Cuba, and Magnetic Fields: Expanding American Abstraction, 1960s to Today (2017). Her work is in numerous public collections, including Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio; Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York; and Studio Museum in Harlem, New York. Her solo exhibition Nanette Carter: A Question of Balance (2025) was on view at the Montclair Art Museum, New Jersey. Learn more about the artist.

Program Support

LEARNING AND PUBLIC PROGRAMS EVENTS MADE POSSIBLE BY

American Electric Power Foundation

CoverMyMeds

Huntington

SUPPORT FOR LEARNING AND PUBLIC PROGRAMS RESIDENCIES PROVIDED BY

Mike and Paige Crane

WEXNER CENTER PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BY

Greater Columbus Arts Council

The Wexner Family

Ohio Arts Council, with support from the National Endowment for the Arts

CampusParc

The Columbus Foundation

Every Page Foundation

Mellon Foundation

Axium Packaging

Nationwide Foundation

Michael and Anita Goldberg

Vorys Sater Seymour and Pease LLP

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY

Joyce Shenk

Rebecca Perry and Ben Towle

Lachelle Thigpen

Close

Past Talks & More

Nanette Carter and George N’Namdi in Conversation