UNM assistant professor’s sculpture acquired by renowned Perry Art Collection

Assistant Professor Stephanie J. Woods is an interdisciplinary art professor in The University of New Mexico's art department, teaching in the sculpture and expanded practice area. She spent the summer of 2025 at the prestigious Bemis Center for the Contemporary Arts international residency program, where she created a sculpture so meaningful that Elliot Perry, a former NBA point guard and his wife, Kimberly Perry, would request to acquire the piece for their nationally recognized art collection.

The Perrys have been collecting significant works of modern and contemporary art since 1996, assembling an influential and well-known collection of works by African American and African-descent artists to preserve and encourage the conversations these artworks inspire.

"When the Perrys reached out to me about acquiring the piece, I was really shocked," said Woods. "I hadn't even documented it yet. I had only shared a short video clip on social media. To be included in their collection means my work will live on past me, as my legacy, it's beyond what I could have imagined for it."

Never Quite, Sweet Enough I is a black porcelain, slip-cast, seeded watermelon with braided synthetic hair, designed to be suspended from the ceiling. It references the historical practice of enslaved West African people braiding seeds and grains, such as rice, okra, watermelon and black-eyed peas, into their hair during the transatlantic slave trade. The sculpture is intentionally abstracted, so the viewer interprets it for themselves.

The Bemis Center international residency program is widely respected and highly sought after for the creative environment it fosters. Participants live and work together for the three-month program, collaborating across disciplines. Woods' cohort was comprised of 14 artists from the U.S. and the United Kingdom.

"At Bemis, I wanted to create a new relationship with my practice and understand where I come from and the importance of the food I ate growing up in the south."

Woods entered her residency with no expectations, deadlines, or audiences in mind for her work, allowing her to create freely. The program allowed her to focus on creating and see what she could do without pressure.

"My goal entering into the Bemis residency was to create work only for me, really looking at what I could do," she said.

Unbeknownst to her, her inward mindset would lead her to create a sculpture that would resonate far beyond anything she imagined.

The acquisition marks a significant milestone for Woods in her career and comes just before her next exhibition opens this month, Jan. 24.

She has been selected as one of 34 prizewinners to showcase a piece in the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery'sseventh triennial Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition. The artists' contributions are from 12 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.

The artwork, My Papa Used to Play Checkers, depicts a figure with a watermelon braided into their hair.

"This piece was the beginning of me working with the watermelon motif in my practice," said Woods.

To learn more about the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, visit the Outwin Boochever upcoming exhibition webpage.

To learn more about Stephanie J. Woods and her work, visit her UNM faculty webpage.