Artist aims to capture and promote stories of Milwaukee's black artists
New York artist Heather Hart, who has facilitated cultural dialog among underrepresented artists through her Black Lunch Table project, is holding two sessions during a weeklong visit to Mount Mary University.
- Black Lunch Table for artists 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12 in the Marian Art Gallery, Mount Mary University invites visual artists and visual art workers with a connection to the Milwaukee area to discuss their cultural histories and experiences around a dinner table. Conversations will be recorded and transcribed for an archive of oral histories that Hart and collaborator Jina Valentine are compiling and sharing online for future use by researchers and academics interested in these first-person accounts by black artists.
- Black Lunch Table community roundtable 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 14 in the Marian Art Gallery, Mount Mary University - This Black Lunch Table session is open to the public and will include focused conversations on the connections and divisions that exist within our communities. Conversations will be recorded and transcribed for the online archive.
These roundtable sessions support Mount Mary's commitment to social justice, as they foster candid conversations and "lay out new productive relationships to continue the movement for dismantling institutional racism," said Marian Gallery curator Josh Anderson.
To further promote awareness of underrepresented artists, Hart will also lead a Wikipedia edit-a-thon 5 to 9 p.m. Monday, Sept. 11 in the Haggerty Library, Mount Mary University, one of a number of sessions taking place around the country to engage the public in creating, updating and improving Wikipedia articles pertaining to the lives and works of minority visual artists. Visit the Black Lunch Table website for more information.
Hart's exhibit of drawings at the Marian Gallery, "Remember This House," is on display through October 6. Hart will also offer a lecture on her work at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 13 on campus, followed by a reception from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Marian Gallery.
These roundtable sessions lay out new productive relationships to continue the movement for dismantling institutional racism.
Josh Anderson
