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news
UAM to challenge
viewers' minds
By Alex Roman
Daily Forty-Niner
Courtesy
of the University Art Museum
Work by Carrie Mae Weems
In 1868, the Hampton
Normal and Agricultural Institute, now known as Hampton University,
was founded to help educate and assimilate newly freed slaves
into society.
More than 130 years
later, artist Carrie Mae Weems will explore the subject in
a whole new way with her multimedia instillation, "Carrie
Mae Weems: The Hampton Project,” which opens Jan. 29
at the University Art Museum.
"What she's done
is taken these images that were originally taken in 1900 of
the Hampton Institute, which is now Hampton University,”
said Stacy Atchley, community relations coordinator for the
University Art Museum. "This artist is really kind of critical
of the work they did, so she's taken these photographs of
the institution from back then and sort of reinterpreted them
and she also has her own photographs included in the exhibition.”
Frances Benjamin
Johnston, who was given her first camera by family friend
George Eastman and worked as White House photographer through
five administrations, originally took the photographs.
Weems, who refers
to herself as "committed to radical social change,”
reinterprets Johnston's work by adding text and audio recordings
in an attempt to challenge the ideology of the institutes
work.
"It's a little
controversial, but it should be visually and politically interesting,”
said Atchley of the exhibition. "There's all kinds of undercurrents
running through the show and it happens to coincide with Black
History Month and Women's History Month, so there's lots of
things to interest all different types of people around campus.”
Also UAM plans
to continue their UAM" at noon” program on selected
Tuesdays, which offers students and faculty a chance to get
away from the daily grind and enjoy musical performances and
panel discussions, as well as beverages and desserts.
"We're kind of
expanding the 'UAM at noon' this semester,” said Atchley.
"We're trying to make them more thematic and will be bringing
in outside scholars and things like that, so it should be
really interesting.”
The UAM, located
in the North Campus Center, is free with a $1 suggested donation
for students. "Carrie Mae Weems: The Hampton Project”
will run from Jan. 29 to April 21. For more info call (562)
985-5761.
"There's
all kinds of undercurrents running through the show and it
happens to coincide with Black History Month and Women's History
Month, so there's lots of things to interest all different
types of people around campus.”
-- Stacy Atchley, community relations coordinator for the
University Art Museum
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