Captioned Black Art
Your Curated Art Museum
“Come for the art, stay for the quotes.”
“I nodded. There were many suggestions. Everyone wanted to make me better, but we couldn’t even name the problem.”
— Victor LaValle, The Ecstatic
A Snippet:
Did you know that many of Victor LaValle’s fictional characters battle mental health challenges within his works?
As the author has stated, “Mental illness has absolutely been one of the fundamental concerns of my early work . . . but even more so because I’ve got a few generations of family members who’ve dealt with clinical issues of mental illness and so, inevitably, it’s become a part of my world view.”
Learn more . . .
211. “Black Madonna”
“And so, there we were starting a museum. The purpose of the museum, as we always stressed, was (through education) to bring people closer together in understanding through mutual appreciation. And that was our purpose then, and still our purpose, that even though we were a museum concerned with Black culture and history, we were not carrying on battles with any other people about their stuff. We were only trying to accentuate the positive in our group.”
— Margaret Taylor-Burroughs
Did you know?
Did you know that Margaret Taylor-Burroughs (1917 - 2010, a visual artist, writer, poet, educator, and arts organizer) co-founded (with her husband) the Ebony Museum of Chicago, now the DuSable Museum of African American History, inside their home in 1961?
This humble abode welcomed luminaries like artist Charles White, Gordon Parks, Augusta Savage and many more who shared their commitment in developing space for African American artists.
The Burroughs’s mansion located at 3806 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, was the first home of the DuSable Museum, but the mansion’s history is also attached to the Pullman porters and the Quincy Club—originally a social club for Black railroad workers.
As a gifted artist herself (who sought to reflect the positive aspects of children’s lives within her community), Margaret Taylor-Burroughs authored children books, like, “What Shall I Tell My Children Who Are Black?” and “Humanist And Glad To Be.”
212. “I, Too, Am America”
“I’m inspired by the human spirit.”
— Morris T. Howard
Did you know?
Did you know that in 1994, after being honorably discharged from the US Navy, Morris T. Howard enrolled at the Art Institute of Atlanta and graduated with an Associate of Arts Degree in Visual Communications only two years later?
After graduation, Mr. Howard continued his studies under the guidance of artists Carl Owens and Simmie Knox.
BTW - did you know that this painting (I, Too, Am America) is based on a poem by Langston Hughes (I, Too)?
The sitter in the portrait is the artist’s godson, Langston, who was 12 at the time and is named for the famous poet.
213. “Walking In Your Shoes”
“As a quiltmaker, I am often asked how long it takes to make a quilt. Short answer, ‘It depends how you count.’”
— Ora Clay
Did you know?
Did you know that Ora Clay, a former public school librarian, is a contemporary fiber artist who’s artwork has also been featured on the front page of The New York Times Arts Section?
In the artist’s own words, in 2011, “My daughter took me to a series of classes at the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco (MOAD), which was taught by master quilter, Marion Coleman. As a beginner I started with quilt post cards and then moved to a set of 12 small quilts to illustrate a calendar series I made every year for family and close friends.”
“In Alabama, as a young child of four or five years of age, I observed my mother making quilts for our beds on a quilting frame of two-by-fours. I watched her stretch the balls of cotton that we grew into a batting layer, and wash and soften flour sacks for backing fabric.”
How long does it take to vary their world?
(Breathe In . . . Breathe Out)
Depends how you count
A STEM Grew Petals Newsletter
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