Exhibition Curator's Notes: Thoughts From the Curator's Perspective about the Exhibition
CURATOR’S NOTES
“All art is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story; to vomit the anguish up.” - James Baldwin
As an African American curator, I had the distinct pleasure of acquiring the rights to the National Museum of African American History and Culture traveling poster exhibition, A Place For All People. ART | library deco, a digital art library is one of many cultural institutions, museums, academic universities and libraries chosen to collaborate with the esteemed museum to share its newly created visual story about the plight of black people in the United States of America. Nothing comes together without struggle, and through putting this entire poster exhibition I set out to do one thing and it turned into another. I count it all joy that I had the opportunity to go through my own trials while having to think about if I would even have the time to complete this project of this size. With that, this experience for me is personal because I am a Black woman artist who believes that this needed to happen. I for one believe in true stories and to process truth visual conceptions help begin conversations about things that are not easy to discuss or witness.
As a visual artist and curator, I wanted to do something different versus just hanging the show and then removing it in a physical space - this is a living body of work and needed to be documented in that way. So, I took it one step further and put the poster exhibition online. From a web developer and design standpoint I decided to use the Wordpress platform to portray visual conceptions that move forward and backwards that will keep you tuned in for hours. There are over twenty posters for art enthusiasts to view about the great works, struggles, and triumphs of African Americans. From the beginning of time, Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Movement, the Black Arts Movement and so forth, you will be amazed at the different artifacts that were collected and exist in the museum. Many of the pieces that you will come to view were donated by average day working people and without their contributions this museum would have not been possible to open. It takes a village to create something of this caliber and those that participated should be commended.
History is the catalyst to informing others about the past and the National Museum of African American History and Culture is the path to understanding the cultural and historical compass of Black people. The first group of slaves landed in Jamestown, Virginia in 1619 and from that point on they fought endlessly for their rights to be equal citizens in this country and they achieved it. I had an opportunity to look back at the past and see that we have come far, and still have many barriers to fight not for ourselves but for future generations. If you have not had the opportunity to visit the National Museum of African American Culture in person take time out to view the online poster exhibition. Additionally, listen to the inaugural speech at the museum opening by President Barack Obama. I feel compelled to say that there is no excuse to not celebrate who you are and from wince your ancestors came.. We all have a story and its elements consist of who, what, when, where and why.
Let’s have a conversation! I would love to hear about your online exhibition experience, thoughts, and suggestions. Feel free to email me at artlibrarydeco@gmail.com.
Devoted to Splendid Art,
kYmberly Keeton, M.L.S.
Director. Art Librarian. Curator.
ART | library deco
sweet as the moment when art went “pop”