The honorable Charles D. Sherman, Secretary of the Treasury, and Mrs. Bess B. Walcott, retired curator of the Carver Unit of the Tuskegee Cultural Center, discuss the new cultural center at Cape Mount.
Lois Mailou Jones was an artist and art educator from Washington, D.C., known for her costumes, textile designs, watercolors, paintings, and collages. Ville d'Houdain, France, is a landscape painting depicting a community in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region.
This image shows three graduate students within the College of Veterinary Medicine conducting an examination of a dog, under the supervision of their professor. An image taken by university photographer Stephan Smith.
In this interview, Texas Southern art alumnus Vernon Simmons discusses his experience as a student who graduated in 1996. Simmons' enrollment was interrupted by his Air Force service; as a result, he learned from different groups of faculty, including Biggers, Simms, Harry Vital, and Harvey Johnson. Biggers inspired him to paint what he could see.
A brochure for a walking tour of the Farish Street Historic District, containing a tour map and pictures of significant homes, churches, nightclubs, and other buildings in the District.
Verna Anderson began teaching 2nd grade at Smith Robertson School in 1936 and worked there until the school’s closing in 1971. She discusses her experiences as a teacher and the factors that caused the school to close in 1971 as well as actions taken to preserve the school in the present.
Hayward Oubre was a multimedia artist and educator from New Orleans, LA. Verily, I Say Unto You depicts a modern portrait of a Black Jesus. Jesus is drawn with an elongated nose with wide nostrils, large eyes, pursed lips, locs, and a raised finger.
Walter Augustus Simon was an art historian, professor, and artist best known for his abstract oil paintings from Petersburg, VA. Venezia is a cubist landscape abstraction depicting San Marco, Venice, ITL. Simon uses a variety of shapes and colors to illustrate Venice’s main public square.
Velma Willis was born in Newton County, Mississippi in 1903 and moved to Jackson in 1943. Ms. Willis talks about starting school in 1911 and finishing 8th grade and becoming a certified teacher for the next 35 years. She talks about her views on race relations in Newton County, one of the counties she taught in. Transcript is hand written.
A newspaper article from The Topeka Capital Journal about defense lawyers in the Topeka Public Schools desegregation case arguing that a memo from the ACLU shows that the organization had preconceived notions about what the evidence should show.
In this letter between Dr. B. L. Perry, Jr. and Ifekandu Umunna, Perry updates Umunna, a Nigerian master’s student, on his and his family’s personal lives. This was an example of the long-lasting, sentimental bonds Perry created during his visit to Nigeria.
A speech about the role of Black women in the Republic of New Afrika. Sister Ayo writes that New Afrikan women are dedicated to the total liberation of their people and will also teach the history and heritage of their children to prepare them for self rule. The Republic of New Afrika was founded in 1968 and popularized by black militant groups.
A poem written by former Black Panther Party Member Afeni Shakur after the death of Timothy Adams on June 22, 1982. His death came from complications from gunshot wounds he suffered 8 years prior at the hands of the police that left him paralyzed. The poem is offered as libation to him and several others who gave their lives for freedom.
William H. Johnson was a painter from Florence, SC. Untitled Folk Scene depicts a couple doing a wide variety of dances within the Southern Jazz tradition. In this iteration of the series, a dapper man dips an equally stylish woman as instruments play around them.
Skunder Boghossian was an artist from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Untitled depicts a spiritual scene of four masquerade figures hanging from a central pole. The four masquerades each wear different masks and wear beads, shells, and bands of color patterns.
Freddie Styles was an abstract painter and collage artist from Madison, Georgia. Untitled is an ink painting of three women with elongated necks, curled hair, and black-painted skin. Their faces are partially concealed as they stare straight ahead. Their torsos are white, with exposed breasts outlined in black ink.
Alexander S. McMath was a painter and educator from Clinton, SC. Untitled depicts a surrealist anatomical rendering of a human figure's side profile. Signed text by the artist sits on the right of the figure.
Vital's painting depicts a bird feeding a worm to its three offspring, reflecting the theme of the mother & child(ren) relationship that often appears in TSU student work. The artist often featured animals and nature in his work. After his graduation, Vital taught art for many years at Texas Southern.
This is a simple work of a richly colored woman featuring a geometric face with oval eyes, a triangle nose, and a prominent square mouth. The sculpture has African origins, yet the specific ethnic group is unknown because of the lack of body markings and hair adornments. The sculpture has a glossy finish.
A call for support, solidarity, and financial aid for the legal defense of people on trial for police killings. The author writes that the incarcerations are part of a long-term strategy of the system to destroy the Black and Puerto Rican freedom movements and gives multiple examples of people and organizations that had been carried out on.
William C. Henderson II was an artist from Pontiac, MI. Union is a geometric drawing that interrogrates the intersection of lines and shapes. The piece centers a split circle, one side consisting of lines, the other of shapes, with two intersecting squares overlayed over it.
A letter from Nuh Abdul Qaiyum, who is imprisoned, to his wife Frankye Adams-Johnson (Malika). He writes about their spiritual union, its power, and giving into negativity in life and the world. He reassures her of their true love outside of the physical sense. He includes meditations for her to practice in the hopes that she will find peace.
A red button with the logo for the Uhuru Cultural Center. The Uhuru Movement (from the Swahili word for "Freedom”) is an African Internationalist movement founded in 1972 by the African People's Socialist Party (APSP). Uhuru cultural centers and art centers were established around the country.
A newspaper article from The Star Ledger about District Court Judge George H. Barlow inspecting the cell where Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) is being held in Middlesex County to stand trial for the May 1973 killing of a state trooper. Shakur was convicted in 1977 of the killing and escaped prison in 1979.
A letter from Nuh Abdul Qaiyum, who is imprisoned, to his wife Frankye Adams-Johnson (Malika). He details their love as it relates to their nature and their religion. He writes of their divine connection and compares their physical love to arena warfare. He compares her presence to an engraving on his brain.
A memo calling for assistance with the funeral for Twymon Myers who was killed by New York City police officers and F.B.I. agents on November 14th, 1973. The unknown author asks the community for donations toward his funeral as a way to show the police that he was a beloved freedom fighter with the support of the people and not a criminal.
A letter from Frankye Adams-Johnson (Malika) to her husband, Nuh Abdul Qaiyum, who has been imprisoned since 1975. She writes about their rare correspondence and lack of depth in conversation. She also writes about her faith and how Allah will continue to protect her and the children through hard times.
