ARTH 6930-Art & Global Diversity

Dr. Pamela Brekka

Reading Response Week 3

Kendra Edgell

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Museums and curators in America have been working to display and exhibit the artwork of African American’s since the 1920s. Most of these exhibitions have come with blatant racism, although it seems that most frequently, the intent of these displays was to oppose and disrupt racism in America and to encourage the creation and presentation of artworks by artists of color.

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Bridget R. Cooks explores the demand for the inclusion of African American representation, participation, and intervention in museum galleries and in the American art scene “Exhibiting Blackness African American and the American Art Museum.” (2011) Cooks discusses the timeline of the first exhibitions of African American art in museums throughout the 20th century. She also describes the acceptance and value of African American art in regards to its imitation of the European aesthetic or its primitivism. She later discusses the economic, social, and racial barriers to African American artists to museums, and their later inclusion to exhibits, however sparse and inconsistent, were based on the aforementioned “value” of the works according to white museum directors and curators. Cooks identifies two approaches in which museums have displayed the artwork of African Americans, anthropologically and the “corrective” approach. In several examples throughout the article Cooks describes various museum exhibitions and how they were perceived by the artists, curators, and visitors. In this article, she examines the complex role that museums hold and the importance of how they represent the artworks, the artists, and the cultures within.

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In the New York Times article written by Jori Finkel, “The Enslaved Artist Whose Pottery was an Act of Resistance,” (2021) the author reveals how the artwork of one enslaved man showed defiance during a time when such acts were extremely dangerous and punishable to those who dared to cross certain lines, such as reading and writing. The artist is known as “Dave the Potter” made stoneware that is only distinctive by his rebellious and bold inscriptions on his pots. These acts of resistance and defiance have helped shed light on not only the artistic achievements of enslaved African Americans but also tell the story of one man when so much information is missing. Because of these works and their inscriptions, David Drake’s story has been pieced together through census records. The author goes on to explain that these works of art, which at first seem humble, came to auction and set world records and became a “turning point” to tell the stories of slavery in America. Finkel addresses that we know of this artist only because of his markings on the stoneware, and brings the question forward of how many unknown slaves were also creating works of art or utility that are unknown to history, continuing the removal of African American artistic accomplishments.

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Marit Dewhurst and Keonna Hendrick point out in, “Identifying and Transforming Racism in Museum Education,” (2017) that “Racism” … “is alive and well in our field.” (p. 102) The author’s goals are to educate museums and their staff to recognize their own racism and creating conversations exhibits that dismantle the ideas and practices that bring further pain and separation of specific groups of people. Throughout this article, they introduce steps and ideas for museum educators to transform institutionalized racism and dismantle systems of injustice by committing to taking accountability and practicing these steps against racism and towards equity. Museums must rethink their exhibits and how they present or promote racism, even if they are doing so unknowingly.

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