Introduction
On Sunday, August 26 th, I went to check the exhibition of the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s (NMAAHC). After going through all the national museums that were on display, the location I chose to visit Eden Fine Art Gallery, San-Francisco for the purposes of the cultural activity report. Motivated by the displayed features and details and what I had read about exhibition HUM 112, I ventured to check out a retail gallery, However, the scheduled time for the Museum visit was hard for and I had “squeeze” my daily life schedule. First, I had to make an arrangement and take off work early on Friday, August 24 th and check out with my son whether he could accompany me as he was not new in Eden Fine Art Gallery. Unfortunately, he was preparing for the final exams and thus, he was not able to participate with me. I arrived at the museum ground at around past noon, so it was pretty much empty.
Event Details
Immediately upon arriving at the museum, my reaction was “overwhelmed.” On the walls, there were more than hundreds of different paintings together with their brochures which had information about different events. Besides the overwhelming feeling, I was so much excited as my last time to visit a museum I was around 9 years old in New York with the company of my dad.
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Description of the Event
The view of the first pieces caught my attention and immediately drew me in. It was a painting that had been done by some students from Hampton University. The painting and the information scripts in it were great and incredible. I concentrated and reviewed the details of the art and it was about olden years of Hampton and the artists Samella Lewis, John Biggers, and Elizabeth Catlett among others. Looking at the caption details, it was that it celebrates the outstanding artists' legacy and also to honor the stewardship of their work excellence.
Viktor Lowenfeld (center) looking over the work of two of the first Hampton students to receive art fellowships, Michael Portilla (left) and Joseph Gilliard (right), 1941. Henry Ossawa Tanner, The Banjo Lesson, 1893
To be honest, out of the excitement I got in this museum, I would have loved to read and see more from the African American art figures and paintings. Another art piece that I found it amazing was named "The Banjo Lesson" painting. After reading the attached information I noted that Banjo piece was the painter and it was based on an African American life. The painting showed the painter’s musical talent. Further, it was clear that the painting depiction was contrary to the stereotyped depictions of a banjo player. In the painting, there was also a young child that is playing and advancing new styles and skills.
The second piece was outside of the main exhibit. It depicted Greensboro Counter Student Sit-In, 1960. On February the same year, four African Americans college students forcefully participated in the “whites only” lunch counter in the Northern Carolina at an F.W. Woolworth, Greensboro. This piece showed how their activism resulted in a desegregation of the lunch counter.
The last two paintings that I liked at the Hampton University Museum was an Allegory of Vanity and the Apulian Shepherd which are the artistic work of Matthijs van den Bergh and Joachim Wtewael respectively. For an Allegory of Vanity , although I was not concerned with the lady in this painting, she seemed to be out of place or like she’s married to a Pirate. Yes, I felt like it is the only Pirate who should be “seeing” this woman but I liked other details which were added to the rest of the painting. Some of the things that made feel the presence of a Pirate were coins, gold items, and other several treasure items. Out of all these features of this painting, I really liked the arrangement of the items on the table as it reminded me of another painting I saw in New York at the age of 8 called " Vanitas Still Life” by Cornelis Norbertus.
On the other hand, the Apulian Shepherd painting was in a 6” by 8” frame which showed people dressed and others nude dancing in a circle. Reviewing the painting in the center right, you could see three women dancing on the right folk playing instruments. The Satyr in the painting depicts that it might have been mythological, but there is also a man with a pan on the right hand. So, whether this man is playing or not, one can only make a guess.
Summary and Overall Reaction
Conclusively, I believe that undertaking this cultural activity was a better way to summarize and practice all that we have been taught on this quarter. Since the 60s of Greensboro Sit-In, to the most of the artistic works such as that of Jacob Lawrence to the rise of African Americans in military and sports, this exhibition made a greater exploration of the contributions of the African American to the history of this country. After undertaking this learning activity, my overall reaction is that the event was a well-put-together exhibition as I had a great time and gained a lot of knowledge. The truth is other than the purpose of the coursework, I enjoy cultural and museum events such as this. With this, I had no difficulties in choosing and finding an exhibit that would provide a positive and enlightening experience.
References
Marshall, J. J. (2015). Casting Doubts: Cultural Overproduction at the National Sculpture Society Exhibition, San Francisco, 1929. Space Between: Literature & Culture, 1914-1945 , 11 .
Rice, R. B., Bullough, W. A., Orsi, R. J., & Irwin, M. A. (2017). The Elusive Eden: A new history of California . Waveland Press.
