Arts & Entertainment
Black History Museum embraces the past and looks to the future with Romare Bearden exhibition
The iconic artist’s exhibit, the museum’s largest to date, highlights its new, expanded space and its efforts to reach an even larger visitor base.
A new traveling exhibition opening today at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia featuring iconic artwork unlike the museum has ever seen. “Romare Bearden: Vision and Activism” will include more than 50 works of art celebrating and examining the black experience.
Bearden is recognized as one of the most important visual artists of his century and is especially known for collages depicting American culture. Many of them, created from cut and torn magazine photographs, make powerful statements on African-American life. His work has been displayed around the world.
“Vision and Activism” will include limited edition prints, collages, ink drawings, oil and watercolor paintings. Several magazine covers will be on display that come directly from Bearden’s archive. Early works, such as, the original collage Jacob and the Angel Tree from 1961, and Soup Kitchen from 1935, rarely travel and will be a part of the exhibit. In all, 54 works will be on display.
“We’re proud to bring this important exhibition to Virginia,” said museum director Tasha Chambers. “Bearden used his unique template to discuss issues in society that continue to be relevant today. The museum will be a meeting place to continue this discussion.”
Chambers says the exhibit was slated to open at the museum back in May, but scheduling conflicts meant it had to be delayed. She says she hopes this will be the first of many larger traveling exhibits, many of which the museum couldn’t host before in their previous space. “Our old building wasn’t climate controlled, which was one of many limitations that prevented national exhibitions from coming in,” she says. “We’re also better funded now. We’ve never done anything to this magnitude.”
“His works are still very socially relevant today,” Chambers says of Bearden. “[His work] displays the struggles and triumphs of people of color; I hope visitors will be inspired by it. Not only do I want them to understand who he was as an artist, but I hope [the exhibition] will lead students and young back professionals to consider a career in the museum environment.”
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A 21st century museum experience
Tasha Chambers (Photo: Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia)
Along with a state-of-the-art facility, the museum’s new space also employs a “digital first” strategy. Over 90% of the Black History Museum’s permanent exhibits feature large touch screen monitors that tell the story of people of color from Emancipation through the Civil Rights Movement, providing visitors with an up-close-and-personal experience that’s tailored to the next generation of museum-goers.
“It’s definitely a different experience,” says Chambers. “I think that differentiates us from other museums. It allows us to make updates very easily to our exhibits–we’re grateful and excited we’re able to update things at a much quicker pace.”
While reaching a younger demographic is key to most any museum’s longevity, the organization is also working to add more artifacts and non-digital assets to their permanent collections to further engage their core visitor base, which is still those over the age of 40.
Since opening, however, Chambers notes the museum has seen a sharp increase in the number of school field trips and summer camp visits. “We’re working on finding the medium–adding more artifacts but also embracing the new,” she says.
The Black History Museum opened in its original home at 00 Clay Street in 1991, not far from their current location in the former Leigh Street Armory. The house, built in 1832, was purchased by the Council of Colored Women, under the leadership of Maggie L. Walker, in 1922. A decade later, it became the Black branch of the Richmond Public Library and was named in honor of Rosa D. Bowser, the first Black female school teacher in Richmond.
The museum’s board of directors began looking at the current location after “Save America’s Treasures,” a national historical site preservation program, agreed to fund rehabilitation of the Leigh Street Armory, a surplus property of the City of Richmond which had suffered a fire and years of neglect. After having much of its exterior brickwork redone, new floors installed, a new roof put on, and a major addition constructed at the rear of the structure, the museum moved in and opened its doors in May of 2016.
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Keeping the momentum going
The Bearden exhibit, the largest to date, is just the first of many larger exhibits planned, Chambers says. “We want to change the perspective of what (the museum) is. We’re not a state funded museum. I see a lot of excitement with very young children, but we’re also trying to bring in younger donors. We hope to see more of that as we bring in more exhibitions with national recognition.”
Taking a page from the playbook of other local museums, she says the Black History Museum would like to bring in more fine art exhibitions and build excitement by hosting events centered around what today’s youth are most interested in. Expanded children’s exhibitions are planned as well.
“The museum world (in Richmond) has been great about contributing and collaborating,” Chambers says. Several of the Black History Musuem’s board members also serve on those of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and other area institutions.
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As part of the Bearden exhibit, which runs through December 13th, Dr. David C. Driskell, one of the world’s leading authorities on African-American art and a friend of Bearden, will host a discussion at the museum about the exhibit on September 20th from 6:00 – 7:00 PM. Driskell will talk about Bearden’s impact on society, along with personal experiences from their friendship.
The Black History and Cultural Center of Virginia is located at 122 W. Leigh Street in Jackson Ward and is open 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM Tuesday through Saturday and on Sundays by appointment only. Admission is $10 for adults; $8 for seniors and students with valid ID; $6 for children 4 – 12 years of age; and children 2 and under are free. Membership for the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia includes admission and starts at $35 per year. Visit the museum website to learn more.
Artwork courtesy of The Romare Bearden Foundation
Arts & Entertainment
Richmond Flying Squirrels to host summer movie series in the Diamond outfield
The Richmond Flying Squirrels will host Summer Movie Series presented by Woodfin at The Diamond with three chances to watch movies at The Diamond, the team announced recently.
The Richmond Flying Squirrels will host Summer Movie Series presented by Woodfin at The Diamond with three chances to watch movies at The Diamond, the team announced recently.
Movies will be shown on the video board at The Diamond on Friday, June 30, Sunday, August 27 and Saturday, September 16. Admission is $10 per person (children ages three and younger are admitted free). Tickets are available now at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Movies.
The three-night movie series begins on Friday, June 30 with a showing of the classic Pixar film, “WALL-E.”The gates open at 6:30 p.m. and the movie will start at 7:30 p.m.
On Sunday, August 27, the Flying Squirrels will host a showing of “The Goonies” at 7 p.m. The gates will open at 6 p.m.
The movie series concludes on Saturday, September 16 with “Encanto.” The gates will open at 5:30 p.m. and the movie will begin at 6:30 p.m.
Seating will be located on the field or in the first-base lower bowl. Guests are encouraged to bring blankets or pillows, but chairs are prohibited.
Concessions will be available for the Summer Movie Series at the first-base lower stand on the stadium’s concourse. No outside food and drinks are allowed. Only credit or debit cards will be accepted at the concession stands.
Parking for the Summer Movie Series will be available for free in the Blue Lot at The Diamond, located off Arthur Ashe Boulevard across from the bus station. All guests should enter the stadium through the right-field gate located near the Cross Timbers Roofing Party Pavilion.
Attendees are asked to apply any sunscreen and bug spray before entering the field.
Tickets and more information are available online at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Movies, by phone at 804-359-3866 (FUNN) or in person at the Flying Squirrels ticket office.
Arts & Entertainment
Richmond Triangle Players announces 2023-2024 season shows
Five plays, including a new production of one of RTP’s biggest holiday hits, will take the stage at Richmond Triangle Players for its 2023-24 season, as the company celebrates its 31st year.
Five plays, including a new production of one of RTP’s biggest holiday hits, will take the stage at Richmond Triangle Players for its 2023-24 season, as the company celebrates its 31st year.
“Last year’s 30th Anniversary Season included some of the largest and most ambitious productions we have ever attempted,” said RTP artistic director Lucian Restivo. “This new season, we will take an in-depth look into the LGBTQ+ experience with some intimate and edgier works, alongside a fantastical musical and the return of one of our favorite holiday hits.”
As always, the focus of every RTP is rooted in staying true to its mission, presenting unique — sometimes provocative, sometimes challenging, and sometimes simply hilarious –- works of theater.
For over three decades, Richmond Triangle Players has transformed the community’s conversations about diversity and inclusion through the production of LGBTQ+-themed works A nonprofit, professional theatre company founded in 1993, RTP takes pride in being the leading performing arts company in the region that produces high-quality transformational programming rooted in queer experiences and supports the development of queer artistry.
RTP is the only professional theatre company in the Richmond area – and the longest continually operating one in the entire Mid-Atlantic region — which expressly and regularly serves the LGBTQ+ community. While other local theatres occasionally produce plays with LGBTQ+ content, only Triangle Players has made an ongoing commitment to queer artists, issues, audiences, and community support.
The 2023-24 Season will Include:
A defiantly embracing call to action
One in two by Donja R. Love
September 20 – October 14, 2023
The raucous holiday treat returns in a brand-new production
Scrooge in Rouge, book and lyrics by Ricky Graham, additional material by Jeffery Roberson, other interesting bits by Yvette Hargis, original music composed by Jefferson Turner
November 15 – December 23, 2023
A new look at a ground-breaking comedy
Torch Song by Harvey Fierstein
February 14 – March 9, 2024
Forgotten women who are not easy to forget
Airswimming by Charlotte Jones
April 10 – May 4, 2024
The musical that will roll right into your heart!
Xanadu book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 film of the same name
June 5 – July 13, 2024
Plus, on our Spotlight Cabaret Series (a separate subscription), we will feature:
Georgia Rogers Farmer: Re-Butter My Biscuit! October 19 – 21, 2023
Darienne Lake: Altered Boy, January 19 – 20, 2024.
Dan and Jim: A (Sorta) Love Song, March 15 – 16, 2024.
Nicholas Rodriguez: Sincerely, Sondheim, May 10 – 11, 2024.
Arts & Entertainment
Author Sadeqa Johnson discusses The House of Eve on June 8 as part of the Library of Virginia’s 2023 Carole Weinstein Author Series
Johnson is an international best-selling and award-winning author of five novels. Her novel Yellow Wife, which won the Library’s 2022 People’s Choice Award for Fiction, follows an enslaved woman forced to barter love and freedom while living in the most infamous slave jail in Virginia.
The Library of Virginia’s 2023 Carole Weinstein Author Series continues with a talk by best-selling author Sadeqa Johnson on The House of Eve, the historical fiction follow-up to her award-winning novel Yellow Wife. The free talk will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 8 at the Library of Virginia, 800 East Broad Street, Richmond. A book signing will follow the talk.
The House of Eve continues Johnson’s tradition of confronting timeless questions that have no easy answers. In this moving work of historical fiction set in 1950s Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., the stories of two women collide in unexpected ways as they both make decisions that shape the trajectories of their lives. The book explores what it means to be a woman and a mother, and how much one is willing to sacrifice to achieve her greatest goal. The House of Eve was an instant New York Times best seller and was selected by Reese’s Book Club as the February 2023 pick.
Johnson is an international best-selling and award-winning author of five novels. Her novel Yellow Wife, which won the Library’s 2022 People’s Choice Award for Fiction, follows an enslaved woman forced to barter love and freedom while living in the most infamous slave jail in Virginia. Johnson is a Kimbilo Fellow, a former board member of the James River Writers and a member of the Tall Poppy Writers. She also teaches fiction writing for the MFA program at Drexel University.
The Carole Weinstein Author Series supports the literary arts by bringing both new and well-known authors to the Library of Virginia. Free and open to the public, the series focuses on Virginia authors and Virginia subjects across all genres and is made possible through support from the Carole Weinstein Endowment for Virginia Authors. This year marks the Library’s 200th anniversary, a special occasion for spotlighting the Library’s role in bringing attention to talented Virginia writers and fascinating Virginia subjects.
To see the series schedule and register for events, visit www.lva.virginia.gov/public/weinstein. For more information, contact Elizabeth Kaczynski at [email protected] or 804.692.3536.
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