Collector Lynn Nottage, is a playwright whose walls do talk

THE NEW YORK TIMES
Show Us Your Walls
By William L. Hamilton

The playwright Lynn Nottage, at home in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn. The large painting above her is by Norman Lewis, who was a good friend of her father’s. Two works by Romare Bearden are at far left. Credit All Rights Reserved, Romare Bearden Foundation/Licensed by VAGA, New York; All Rights Reserved, Hal Woodruff/Licensed by VAGA, New York; Stephanie Diani for The New York Times

NEW YORK---Staring at the wall might seem like the worst thing that could happen to a writer. But for the playwright Lynn Nottage, the walls of the Brooklyn house where she lives with her husband, Tony Gerber, their two children and her father are her muse. They are also a who’s who of 20th-century African-American art, with a floor-to-ceiling display that includes Norman Lewis and Romare Bearden. The collection continues into the 21st century with Helen Evans Ramsaran and others. Her walls are her windows on the world. “You collect it because it holds some form of mystery, and you bring it home, and you begin a conversation with it,” she said of each object. “‘Why am I so drawn to you? What is it that you’re trying to tell me?’” [More]