Tina Knowles Lawson Found Joy In Art And Now She's Teaching Others To Appreciate It Too

Tina Knowles Lawson opened up about her love of Black art, where she recalled the first time she bid on a piece and reflected on how art has brought her joy.

Speaking with Metropolitan Museum of Art social media manager Kimberly Drew, Lawson said in the September of issue of Vanity Fair that as a child she believed she’d never leave her small town of Galveston, Texas. However, a trip to Houston to see theAlvin Ailey American Dance Theater changed all of that.

“I saw those dancers and all those well-dressed black folks, it made me want to get out of my little town and have a bigger world,” she told the magazine.

Lawson began collecting art at age 19, later acquiring piece through auctions. Although, her first foray into auctions did not go smoothly.

Recalling the first time she bid over the phone, Lawson said, “I got on and next thing I know I bought a Sam Gilliam, I bought two Picasso lithographs. I was like, ‘What did I do?’ I tried not to buy them, but they found me and they threatened to sue me.”

It was also art that helped Lawson move on after her divorce. After splitting from Mathew Knowles in 2011, Lawson dived into art after Beyoncé suggested she explore things that make her happy.

Now, Knowles is extending her passion for art to a new generation.

Through the WACO Theater Center, which she co-founded with hubby Richard Lawson, Knowles helps kids explore all aspects and mediums of art.

And their first adventure? A trip to see a performance by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.