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Trout exhibition, programs honor trailblazing artists

by MaryAlice Bitts-Jackson

When the groundbreaking exhibit Two Centuries of Black American Art brought more than 200 works by Black artists and artisans into the national spotlight in 1976, it broke cultural barriers and reshaped our understanding of Black and American art. Nearly a half century later, a new exhibition recalls this watershed moment and shares the joy with a new generation.

Now on display at The Trout Gallery, The Legacy of Two Centuries of Black American Art is a celebration of Black art and culture and a tribute to the 1976 exhibition, the vibrant community of Black artists at its heart and the ways their work continues to inform the American art world.

While most of the works are a part of The Trout’s permanent collection, six are on loan from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, thanks to generous support from the Art Bridges Cohort Program.

Heralding a landmark event

Curator David Driskell didn’t include his own artwork in his groundbreaking 1976 exhibition. But the 2024 Trout exhibition places his 2006 lithograph "The Bassist” in a prominent position. The work was gifted to Dickinson by Darlene Morris.

The first work in the exhibition is a lithograph by David Driskell, the pioneering artist and scholar who curated the 1976 exhibition.

“He didn’t include his own work in his exhibition because he was focused on uplifting fellow Black artists,” says Ella Layton ’26, one of three students working with gallery staff on exhibition programming, along with Hadley D’Esopo ’23, post-baccalaureate fellow in museum education, and Eden Sanville ’24, post-baccalaureate artist-in-residence.  

Visitors will also drink in works by major figures including Henry Ossawa Tanner, the first internationally known African American artist; Dox Thrash, inventor of the carborundum printmaking technique; and Carlton Moss, director of Frederick Douglass: The House on Cedar Hill (1953) and Harlem After Midnight (1934). Other notable artists represented in the show include Margaret Burroughs; Elizabeth Catlett, Allan Rohan Crite, Jacob Lawrence, Romare Bearden, Hale Woodruff, Alma Thomas, William Henry Johnson and Clementine Hunter.

“These artists interacted with each other. They attended each other’s art openings and saw each other at children’s birthday parties,” says Trout intern Kiersten Kahn ’26. “They read and discussed the same works.”

Because of this, the exhibition includes a display of related literary artifacts culled from Dickinson’s Archives & Special Collections. Kahn and Layton, both double majors in English and Africana studies, provided invaluable perspectives on the literature and contributed to the interpretive text.

Celebrating community

Public events seek to deepen visitors’ experiences with the exhibit in a variety of ways.

Layton (center) and Kahn (right) pose with Hadley D’Esopo ’23, post-baccalaureate fellow in museum education, at an Art on the Farm event, where they spread word about upcoming events at The Trout Gallery. Photo courtesy of The Trout Gallery.

Summer Community Day, held July 7 and cosponsored by The Trout and Hope Station will offer guided public exhibition tours as well as live music and art-focused activities. It also included a showcase of local Black-owned businesses.

On Nov. 9, The Trout will host a symposium with experts on Driskell and his work. And in coming weeks and months, pop-up art events, supported by a Learning and Engagement Grant from Art Bridges, will take hands-on workshops on the road. After learning about Black artists represented in the exhibition, participants will be invited to create their own works in a similar vein.

Layton and Kahn are planning an additional fall campus event to be co-presented by the Africana studies and English departments and The Trout. One of the key things they wish to emphasize is the variety of styles and themes that Black artists of the past and present embrace.

“Black people—including Black artists—are part of a community, but they are also individuals,” says Layton. “As people wrangle with the complicated history of Black artists in America, I hope they see that there are many types of Black artists and many ways that they make their art.”

She adds that she’s energized by the opportunity to spark conversation on the topic and to bring what she’s learning in classes to light on campus and beyond. Kahn agrees: “In class we learn that Africana studies is an activist degree—everything we learn should be put into practice. This is a cool and impactful way to do that.”

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Published July 9, 2024