OVERVIEW
The Amarillo Museum of Art is honored to present an exceptional exhibition by a contemporary African American artist from Friday November 6 – Sunday, January 17, 2010. Color in Freedom – Journey along the Underground Railroad is organized by the Arts Program of the University of Maryland University College. The exhibition brings a fresh and invaluable perspective to an important American story - the complex issues of slavery as viewed in the art of Joseph Holston. The collection of works, divided into four distinct stages, leads viewers along the chronology of the lives of those who forged the passage to freedom. Each stage is faithful to a particular period in the unfolding story: Arrival in the Unknown World; Living in Bondage—Life on the Plantation; The Journey of Escape; and Color in Freedom.
AMoA offers educational programming in conjunction with the exhibition for local and regional schools, including on-site and off-site programs and visits with the artist. (Contact: Charlie Vaughan, 806.371.5053). Reading lists – both non-fiction and fiction – exploring this segment of American history will be available at both the Amarillo Public Libraries and at AMoA. Interactive learning program to come.
Also on view will be an education exhibition – The Quilt Code – from the collection of Helen Neal.
It is believed by many that quilts were used along the Underground Railroad route as signals to escaping slaves.
Our shared history as a nation contains many complex chapters: perhaps none as complex as the issues of human slavery. Slavery continues in the world today with some 27 million people worldwide enslaved – more than at any other point in the history of the world. This exhibition focuses on slavery in North America during a specific time period, but the ideas presented will help the participants understand the larger worldwide issues surrounding slavery.
With Color in Freedom: Journey Along the Underground Railroad, AMoA has the opportunity to step out of the traditional art world and enhance the viewer’s understanding of individual human responses to the condition of slavery, the dynamics between escape and capture, and the brightness and color in the beauty of freedom. The story is important as history, but it is even more important as a lesson in the resilience of the human spirit.
ARTIST STATEMENT FROM JOSEPH HOLSTON
Creating this Body of work was both a privilege and a source of inspiration. In capturing the spiritual and emotional essence of this journey that is an essential part of my own history, I felt a strong sense of connection, and a bond with lives just a few generations removed. My principle goal was to honor those lives, and to do justice to their history and their stories. This was a very personal undertaking, during which I could almost feel the dread of capture, the degradation of enslavement, the terror of escape and the exhilaration of freedom. I had many of my own down days while recreating this journey, which I now know were essential in order for me to communicate these stories.
In every canvas, light or the contrast between light and dark means hope, even in the bleakest situations. As I worked my way through the movements towards freedom, my color palette and my mood changed from drab to bright. As we moved together toward our goal, the more generous splashes of color, with light edging out darkness, anticipated our hard won freedom, which I was finally able to express in vibrant, joyous colors.
Finally, it was very natural to conceive and execute Color in Freedom in movements, like a great jazz or symphonic score, with a definite beginning, middle and climax. Music is integral to my art, and for me music and art intertwine so completely that I see, hear and feel them simultaneously. Each influences the other and helps defines what unfolds on the canvas.
Joseph Holston 2009
SPONSORS
Josephine Anderson Charitable Trust
Texas Commission on the Arts
Amarillo Chamber of Commerce Arts Committee
Anonymous
Harrington Exhibit Fund
Link image:
Joseph Holston
Righteous Rejoicing, 2008
The Fourth Movement: Color in Freedom
Mixed media, 48 x 42"
Image © The artist
Text images (left to right):
Joseph Holston
Subjugation, 2008
The First Movement: The Unknown World
Mixed media, 48 x 42"
Image © The artist
Joseph Holston
After Harriet, 2008
The Third Movement, Journey of Escape
Mixed media, 48 x 42"
Image © The artist
Print, Bookmark or Share
