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 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. In addition, her "travels to Africa ... greatly influenced [her] style and direction of work."