Professors Barbara Krauthamer and Deb Willis appeared on February 1 at the International Center for Photography in New York for a book signing for their new book Envisioning Emancipation: African Americans and the End of Slavery.
Deb Willis and Barbara Krauthamer will appear at the Schomburg Center on February 4th at 6:00 PM for a presentation, discussion, and book signing for the new book, Envisioning Emancipation: Black Americans and the End of Slavery. Envisioning Emancipation- produces and encourages the view of African American courage and heroism under 240 years of enslavement in the americas. This view denies the post-enslavement version promoted in classical american history. The very highly regarded book has been in high demand throughout the United States since its formal release on January 1, 2013.
Visualizing Emancipation– an exhibition of civil war era photographs curated by Dr. Willis is also on display at the Schomburg Center until March 9, 2013.
The authors will also appear for book signings on Thursday, February 7th at the Philadelphia Free Library in Philadelphia, Pa.
Ecole Nationale Superieure des Baux-Arts/14 Rue Napoleon/Paris, France
‘Black Portraiture[s]: Black Bodies in the West’ The fifth conference in the series opened January 17, 2013 at the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beau-arts/ 14 Rue Bonaparte/ Paris, France. The registration exceeded all expectations. On a very cold day in Paris all panels were full and the presentations were attended by standing room only conferees. According to the producers:
The conference launch was a resounding success, boasting over 350 local and international attendees from Tunisia and Canada, Angola and Denmark, South Africa and Spain. We are thrilled at the turnout and inspired by such lively discussion.
The second session opens today January 18 at 9:00 AM and registration continues until 5:00 PM.
Conference Registration – Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris, France.
The producers have chosen the beautiful École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (ENSB-A), the distinguished National School of Fine Arts in Paris, France as the site for registration. Throughout history, many world-renowned artists have either taught or studied at this institution.
Panelists on January 18 include:
Cheryl Finley, Cornell University:
Pamela Newkirk, NYU
Roshini Kempadoo, University of London
Isolde Brielmaieer, Chief Curator, SCAD Museum of Art/SCAD Galleries: Chair
Carrie Mae Weems, Artist, JackShainman Gallery, New York
Mark Anthony Neal, Professor of Black Popular Culture, Duke University
Conference Attendees Listen to a Presenter
Sandra Jackson-Dumont, Seattle Art Museum, Chair
Robert O’meally, Columbia University
Mimi Plange, Fashion Designer
Michaela Angela Davis, Writer fashion expert and image activist
and many others from throughout the western world.
NYU Professor Dr. Deborah Willis is among the principal organizers and collaborators to produce ‘Black Portraiture(s): The Black Body in the West’ in Paris, France January 17-20, 2013. The conference is sponsored by Harvard University and NYU among others. Over 500 scholars and artists have registered to attend. Participants and guests are expected to arrive from many countries including France, US, UK, Germany, Nigeria, Angola, SA, Netherlands and the Caribbean. This conference will be the fifth in the series since 2004.
Black Portraiture(s) explores the ideas of self-representation, desire, and the exchange of the gaze from the 19th century to the present day in fashion, film, art, and the archives. How are these images, both positive and negative, presented to define, replicate, and transform the black body? Why and how does the black body become a purchasable commodity in a global marketplace…and what are its legacies? Also importantly, what should be the responses and implications for the future? How can performing blackness be more liberating for performer and audience? Can the black body be de-racialized to emphasize cultural groupings in encouraging appropriation among varied performers across racial lines?
The conference draws on the ideas and works of leading and emerging writers, photographers, scholars, artists, curators and filmmakers of our time. One aim is to encourage a broader discussion of the contributions from Africa and the African diaspora in the popular discourse. How the black body has been imagined in the West has always been a rich site for global examination and contestation. The representation and depiction of black peoples has often been governed by locally prevailing attitudes about race and sexuality.
It is both important and significant that this project represents the collaboration among such a diverse group of distinguished international scholars, artists, and intellectuals.
Event Organizers: Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Deborah Willis, Manthia Diawara, Jean-Paul Colleyn, Lydie Diakhate, Awam Amkpa, Chery Finley, Anne-Christine Taylor-Descola, Anna Laban, Christine Barthe, Caroline Montel-Glenisson, Raissa Laheine, Thelma Golden, and Nicholas Bourriaud.
‘Envisioning Emancipation’recounts a dynamic history of black self-possession and self-determination… one that challenges the abiding myth of the crusade against slavery and segregation: that of passive black victims who obtained freedom mostly through the benevolence and generosity of their white saviors.” “Groundbreaking…The book explores how blacks ‘positioned themselves and were posed by others’ in order to advance, question or alter prevailing ideas about race.”
African American Civil Way Union Soldier and Family
The history of America’s enslaved African Americans, is most often ignored entirely in the telling of the American story. If the African American enslaved is mentioned at all in most histories of America it is as downtrodden victims, a poor people who are entirely dominated by the superior ruling group, or as backdrop to historical events such as the Revolutionary War, and even the Civil War. Seldom are they seen as heroes and even less often are they applauded for the stealth and cunning with which they have survived against impossible odds throughout the history of the country. The stories are often told of how they were saved by the abolitionist movement and the generosity of the Abraham Lincoln’s of the era. Notwithstanding the singular importance of these interracial and cross cultural collaborations it is only recently that slaves and former slaves are seen as having had a great deal to do with their own liberation! The indomitable spirit, the steadfast belief in God, and in themselves, an unbelievable optimism that spanned 400 of the darkest years imaginable. That spirit still survives to this day…these are traits that should be remembered and celebrated on this coming 150th anniversary!
Order online Amazon.com “Currently in bookstores and at your favorite online retailer!”
‘NOTABLE COMMENTS’
“Envisioning Emancipation offers an illuminating and inspiring look at the men and women who enabled, lived through, and were affected by the landmark event of emancipation. With a stunning collection of photographs accompanied by engaging new scholarship, this book is sure to have a vital and important impact on the way we see our nation and ourselves.” THELMA GOLDEN, Director and Chief Curator of the Museum of Harlem
“When Frederick Douglass observed that ‘Negroes can never have impartial portraits at the hands of white artists,’ he virtually predicted a century of derogation and invisibility for African Americans. Images of African Americans under slavery or even later during Reconstruction are notoriously rare, and there has never been a comprehensive survey of these always illuminating photographs. In Envisioning Emancipation, Deborah Willis and Barbara Krauthamer have painstakingly filled in many of the missing pieces, compiling an extraordinary photograph album of African American vernacular life that will be treasured as much for its historical insights as for its powerful aesthetic impact.” BRIAN WALLIS, Chief Curator, International Center of Photography
“Envisioning Emancipation is a rare publication that is intellectually innovative and emotionally enriching. Willis and Krauthamer have transformed the way scholars will look at abolitionism and the transition from enslavement to freedom by carefully recasting and reassessing black imagery to better understand and explore the intersection of race, gender, propaganda, and identity. The authors remind us that photography was a valuable and effective weapon in the struggle over the future of slavery in America. A weapon that was used, fought over, and manipulated by all involved.” LONNIE BUNCH is the Founding Director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture
“[A] stunning range of images that ‘allow us to contemplate not only the history of slavery and emancipation but also our continued ties to that history and its legacies.’ The result is a gem: haunting, touching, troubling, inspiring, and informative….Particularly noteworthy is the attention given to women, especially their role in the Civil War…. Though it does not purport to be a photographic history of African-Americans, one will certainly see the course of history leading to emancipation.” —Publishers Weekly
The new book by Professors Deb Willis and Barbara Krauthamer has risen in less that a month in release to:
