We’re so excited to start collaborating with the Association of Black Artists over the next few weeks to further discussion of Maurice Berger’s Race Stories. This week, ABA Vice President and cinematic artist, Manal Murangi, has reflected on “Holding A Mirror to Race,” discussing artists’ intentionality when prompting viewers to reflect on their art, how curatorial intent contributes to the larger issue in the art field of curating versions of reality that uphold racism, and the role of and pressure on artists to create work that teaches viewers about history and racial inequality. 

Check out her full reflection here: https://tinyurl.com/yyuzxwm9

This week, we’re revisiting Maurice Berger’s Race Stories article, “Holding a Mirror to Race,” which looks at Derek Burrows, Greg French, and Gregory Fried’s interactive website called “Mirror of Race.” The website presents viewers with 19th century photographs that picture people of different races in varying settings, but only provides the accompanying caption after viewers click on the photo. This is meant to allow viewers to sit with their initial assumptions and perceptions about race, “privately self-examine” their unfiltered reactions, and prompt the internal and interpersonal dialogue that is crucial to eliminating racism.

Article link: https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/holding-a-mirror-to-race/ 

Website link: http://mirrorofrace.org/

Call for work & art! Please consider submitting to the commonvision Physical Distanzine. A lot has changed since we left campus in March of 2020. We want to create a platform and outlet for work themed and/or created during this time. 

We are open to any type of media that can be shared in print or digitally. Submissions are open to all UMBC students (undergraduate and graduate), staff, faculty, and alumni. 

Deadline is August 2, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. Submit at tinyurl.com/physicaldistanzine - questions? Email commonvision@umbc.edu #UMBC #UMBCTogether

Today we’re revisiting Maurice Berger’s Race Stories article, “The Faces of Bigotry: When the Hoods Come Off.” This article features photos of white supremacist protests in Charlottesville, VA and likens them to photographs of German neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klan gatherings in the early to mid 1900s. These photographs intend to make the faces of those who uphold values of bigotry, violence, and hate visible— oftentimes people we know. 

Article: https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/08/21/the-faces-of-bigotry-when-the-hoods-come-off/

This week, we’re featuring Maurice Berger’s Race Stories article, “Photos That Challenge Stereotypes About African-American Youths.” This article looks at photographs from “Picturing Children,” the fourth volume in a series of books published by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. Works from “Picturing Children” explore the routines of everyday life in Black communities and the added weight Black children are pressured to shoulder because they are being raised in a world that already has preconceived notions and prejudices about them because of their skin color. The photographs also consider how Black children are forced to grow up in a society with systems that do not allow them to be children and, instead, must face the discrimination and injustices that infiltrated their schools and communities. 

Article:https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/07/19/african-american-children-empowered-by-photography/

We’re continuing our reflection on Black history and Maurice Berger’s Race Stories this week by revisiting “Pictures of Men, Friends or Lovers.” This article looks at historian Trent Kelly’s collection of photographs of Black gay men from the Civil War to the present. Kelly’s collection of over 200 photographs, titled “Hidden in the Open: Photographic Essay of Afro American Male Affections,” considers how Black gay men had to endure both white America’s prejudice for the color of their skin and hate for their sexuality. They were also often rejected from their own Black communities and considered “second-class citizens in gay culture.”  

Article: https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/10/pictures-of-men-friends-or-lovers/   

Apply to be Arts and Culture’s Paws for Art writer for The Retriever!

Responsibilities:

Arts and Culture is looking for a writer who is passionate about the Arts and giving due attention to student artists around campus. This position is open to writers who are enthusiastic about sharing UMBC students’ artistic projects and goals. Applicants should have a  general knowledge about various expressions of art (visual arts, music, creative writing, dance, etc.), a willingness to learn about new artistic interpretations,  as well as the readiness to network, learn about and contact artists around campus. Applicants should be prepared to produce one article every two weeks, each article being dedicated to a different student artist.

Requirements:

You must be an undergraduate student at UMBC with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 and a minimum of 30 credits. 

To Apply:

Please visit the Retriever website at https://retriever.umbc.edu/join-our-team/ and fill out the application

For more information, email  ade12@umbc.edu.

Note: This is a paid position and can be done remotely.