Malkia Roberts
Lucille Elizabeth Davis "Malkia" Roberts (1917–2004) was an American painter and educator known for her African-inspired themes and long career in Washington, D.C. A graduate of Howard University and the University of Michigan, she taught in D.C. public schools for decades. Roberts also held academic positions at several universities, including Howard. Influenced by her travels to Africa and studies in sociology, Roberts blended intellectual themes with vibrant artistic expression.
Also recorded as Lucille Malkia Roberts · Lucille D. Roberts · Lucille Elizabeth Malkia Davis Roberts
Malkia Roberts
- Name
- Malkia Roberts
- Born
- February 2, 1917
- Birthplace
- Washington, D.C.
- Died
- April 28, 2004 (age 87)
- Place of death
- Silver Spring, MD
- Education
- University of Michigan Howard University
- Known for
- Painting
- Nationality
- United States
- Occupation
- painter · artist
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Malkia Roberts. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q28608433 · wikipedia · Malkia Roberts
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
The documentary record
Statements marked “Documentary record” are set in the article beside the passage they confirm. Each is read from the authority records of the institutions named here; select “Prove” to see the record it was read from, where in that record, and when.
Institutions cited
Getty Union List of Artist Names
Complete reading chain (JSON)In this article
Biography
Biography
Her work was widely exhibited and remains in numerous public and private collections, reflecting her deep engagement with cultural heritage and artistic education.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Malkia Roberts • Born — February 2, 1917 • Birthplace — Washington, D.C. • Died — April 28, 2004 (age 87) • Place of death — Silver Spring, MD • Education — University of Michigan Howard University • Known for — Painting • Notable Works — "Out of the Blues" • Style — Abstract
Documentary record
Malkia Roberts lived from 1927 to 2004 and was a teacher and painter. Malkia Roberts died in 2004 in Washington.
Life
Life
Born in Washington, D.C., Roberts earned her bachelor's degree from Howard University and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Michigan. Roberts taught for D.C. public schools throughout her career, including Duke Ellington School of the Arts and Shaw Junior High School, where she taught alongside Alma Thomas for forty years. She held professorships of art and art history at D.C. Teachers College, State University of New York at Oswego, Washington Technical Institute and American University. Roberts traveled extensively during her career, but much of her work was informed by African themes and topics. Roberts also studied with Hale Woodruff and taught at Howard University from 1976 to 1985. Roberts exhibited widely, and numerous private and public collections include her works. According to Roberts, her studies heavily influenced her: "I have various degrees in Sociology which allow me to inject intellectual themes into my artistry." In addition, her "travels to Africa... greatly influenced [her] style and direction of work." • Illustration — Malkia Roberts (1923), “Spectrum” Acrylic on canvas 1972
Documentary record
Malkia Roberts was born in 1927 in Washington.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Washington and D.C.
Birth place
Silver Spring.
Death place
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Malkia Roberts, revision 1372583208 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Lucille Elizabeth Davis "Malkia" Roberts Bio and Resume. galeriemyrtis.net.
- 2.Routledge. North American Women Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary. 19 December 2013. 978-1-135-63882-5.
- 3.Pomegranate. Alma W. Thomas: A Retrospective of the Paintings. 43–. 1998. 978-0-7649-0686-2.
- 4.King-Tisdell Museum (1988). Odyssey: Paintings [by Malkia Roberts ].
- 5.Samella S. Lewis. African American Art and Artists. University of California Press. 150–. 2003. 978-0-520-23935-7.
- 6.Swann Galleries - The Richard A. Long Collection of African-American Art - Sale 2359, Part I - October 9, 2014.
- 7.duBuclet, Linda. The Blues: Artist's Best Work. The Washington Post. December 27, 1984.
- 8.Peirre-Noel, Lois Jones. Black Women in the Visual Arts: A Comparative Study. New Directions. 3. 2. 1976.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
People, houses and institutions
Knowledge graph
People, houses and institutions
Teachers, collaborators, publishers and institutions recorded against this person, each on a stated basis.
Died at
1- Silver SpringPlace
Established from a fact already recorded on a verified source.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 24 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Paintings
19,456 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Malcolm de ChazalArtist
- Malcolm DrummondArtist
- Malcom McLeanArtist
- Malina SulimanArtist
- Mall NukkeArtist
- Mallika ChabbaArtist
- Malthe EngelstedArtist
- MaludaArtist
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Malkia Roberts?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.