8/7/98
Editors: Information on photographs of the exhibit and possible feature angles appears at the end of this release.
ATHENS, Ohio -- Ohio University's Kennedy Museum of Art will host the works of 24 prominent African-American women artists Sept. 1 through Oct. 14 as part of a multi-city national tour.
"Bearing Witness: Contemporary Works by African American Women Artists" includes more than 60 prints, drawings, mixed-media installations and sculptures by such renowned artists as Howardena Pindell, Betye and Alison Saar, Faith Ringgold, Carrie Mae Weems and Rachelle Puryear. Other host cities on a tour that runs through the fall of 1999 include Houston; Witchita, Kan.; Pullman, Wash.; and Charleston, S.C., which is the next-closest city in which the exhibition will appear.
In the preface of the exhibition's catalogue, the president of Spelman College -- where the exhibit originated -- explains how the works address with poignancy and emotion the issues of race, gender, history, age, class, religion, sexual orientation and more.
"Wherever these works of our sister artists are shown, they will say so much that is both urgent and everlasting, elegant and disturbing, sad and hopeful," Johnnetta Cole wrote. "There is so much in Bearing Witness' that we must see, and that we must hear."
The exhibition's opening in the spring of 1996 at Spelman College in Atlanta, a historically black private college for women, coincided with the college's 115th anniversary. Thousands viewed the exhibition later that year during the Atlanta Summer Olympic Games.
Kennedy Museum of Art Director Kent Ahrens expects the exhibition to be enlightening and inspirational both for the university community and residents of the region.
"The artists represented in this show are exceptional artists who have made major contributions to the development of art in the United States and internationally during the second half of the 20th century," Ahrens says. "This is one of the most significant traveling exhibitions that the museum has hosted."
Located on The Ridges overlooking Ohio University's Athens campus, the Kennedy Museum opened in 1996. Gallery hours are noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday; noon to 8 p.m. Thursday; and 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free.
Several special events will coincide with the "Bearing Witness" exhibition, including a Sept. 26 Art Encounters workshop for elementary school-age children conducted by participating artist Nanette Carter. Originally from Columbus, Carter contributed three paintings from her "Window View-Scapeology" collection to the exhibition. Her Art Encounters event will include a gallery talk by Carter and hands-on art experiences for participants. Additional Art Encounters events tied to the exhibit will be conducted by museum staff members Oct. 3 and 10.
Two public lectures also are planned. On Sept. 24, Ohio University African-American Studies Professor Francine Childs will give a lecture sponsored by the Friends of the Kennedy Museum. Childs, who has been with the university since 1974, will talk about the role art and culture play in the black religious experience.
Childs' teaching and research activities revolve around the family and education. A former Fulbright Scholar, she has received local, regional and national awards for her contributions to African-American studies and education in general. She holds doctoral and master's degrees in counseling and sociology from East Texas State University and a bachelor's in biology from Paul Quinn College in Texas.
The second lecture, to be followed by a public reception, will be presented at 4 p.m. Oct. 8 by Ohio University College of Fine Arts Dean Raymond Tymas-Jones. Former director of the University of Northern Iowa's School of Music, Tymas-Jones joined Ohio University in July. His talk will focus on themes shared by African-American women's art and music. His lecture in the Ridges Auditorium will be followed by a reception in the museum until 7 p.m.
Tymas-Jones graduated magna cum laude from Howard University in 1977 with a bachelor of music degree. He earned a master of music degree in 1979 and a doctorate in 1988, both from Washington University. A singer and choral conductor, he has been a featured soloist with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the St. Louis Orchestra, the Dortmund Youth Orchestra of Dortmund, Germany, and others.
The visit of "Bearing Witness" to Ohio University is funded in part by the Ohio Arts Council. The exhibition is toured by ExhibitsUSA, a division of the private, nonprofit arts organization Mid-America Arts Alliance. The alliance is assisted by its six partner state arts agencies, the National Endowment for the Arts and private contributors.
For photos: Color JPEG images suitable for newspaper reproduction may be downloaded from the Web. To view the photos, click on the appropriate file names (below) at: http://cscwww.cats.ohiou.edu/news/pix/web/
To download the images, go to: http://cscwww.cats.ohiou.edu/news/pix/african1.jpg (A photo of artist Alison Saar's "Clean House," a larger-than-life sculpture of a woman in wood, tin, aluminum paint and mirror.
http://cscwww.cats.ohiou.edu/news/pix/web/AFRICAN2.JPG (A photograph of artist Charnelle Holloway's "Fertility Belt for the Career Woman," a mixed-media piece incorporating a repousse akua ba doll, sterling silver and bronze.
http://cscwww.cats.ohiou.edu/news/pix/african3.jpg (A photograph of artist Betye Saar's "Watching," a mixed media image on metal of a young girl looking through a decorative furnace grate.
http://cscwww.cats.ohiou.edu/news/pix/carter.jpg (A photograph of Columbus, Ohio, native Nanette Carter, a painter whose work is featured in "Bearing Witness.")
For feature ideas: A family guide for viewing the exhibit with children offers the potential to featurize this story. For a faxed copy of the family guide, contact Mary Alice Casey at Ohio University News Services, (740) 593-1890. Also, Nanette Carter may be available for interviews on Sept. 26, the day she presents an Art Encounters workshop at the museum.
