Co-curated by students in Art and Architecture of Africa and professor Susan Kart (ART/AAS/GS-125)
Drawn from the LUAG collection, these works were created by artists who identify or are identified as Black, African American, Latino/a, Caribbean, and sometimes many of the above. All of the artists hail from the Americas, but with vastly different backgrounds. The selected works focus on the power and unity that comes from persevering through a tortured history, and finding strength in one’s community(-ies) and cultural identity(-ies). Each highlights aspects of its maker’s nationality, along with their cultural and ethnic frameworks. Most confront the challenges of persecution based on race, gender, sexuality, or country of origin. The resulting imbalances caused by political retribution, migration and exile, natural and human disasters, lack of equal rights and apathy are presented in unflinching imagery and text. Despite the difficult histories recounted by each artist, the works of art speak of determination, hope, and agency. These artists are forces of nature; they will not be silent. They demand dignity, respect and empathy.
This exhibition was inspired by BALANCE, Lehigh University’s Black and Latino Alumni Network for Community and Equity, which in 2020 is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its founding.
Based on the research and writing of the following:
Susan Kart, Assistant Professor Art History
Trisha Adjmul ‘21
Anastasia Citsay ‘22
Lexie Dippolito ‘22
Sage Fabricant ‘23
Benjina Laurent ‘23
Ethan Lowell ‘21
Cyanah Ramsay ‘22
Zachary Rubenstein ‘20
Evelyn Velasquez-Moreno ‘22
Hector Velez ‘21
