Shirley Woodson
Shirley Woodson (born 1936) is an American visual artist, teacher, mentor, and art collector. She is best known for bold figurative paintings and collages that tell stories about life, the environment, and African American history.
She was born in Pulaski, Tennessee, and moved to Detroit with her family when she was a baby. Woodson earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1958 and a Master of Fine Arts in 1966 from Wayne State University. She studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1960 and did independent study in Rome, Paris, and Stockholm in 1962.
Woodson’s career spans more than six decades. She debuted in 1960 at the Detroit Institute of Arts and began teaching in Detroit Public Schools the same year. Her work has been shown widely, including solo and group exhibitions across the United States and abroad. Her paintings are in major collections such as the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Studio Museum in Harlem, and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. In 2021 she was named the Kresge Eminent Artist, a prestigious honor from the College for Creative Studies.
Her art career goes hand in hand with her work as an educator and community leader. She taught at Highland Park Community College (1966–1978), worked as an art specialist and later as supervisor of fine arts for Detroit Public Schools (1992–2008), and helped found Michigan’s chapter of the National Conference of Artists in 1974. Woodson has mentored many Detroit artists, including Gilda Snowden, and she has inspired generations through exhibitions, teaching, and advocacy.
Woodson is married to Edsel B. Reid (died 2000) and they had two children, Khari and Senghor Reid. Her work continues to be celebrated in museums and in the stories she tells through painting and collage.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 03:59 (CET).