It's Our Art

Watts Riot, by Noah Purifoy 1966 

“Places of Validation, Art and Progression” opened at the California African American Museum on last Thursday September 29, 2011 as part of Pacific Standard Time , the museum-wide collaboration highlighting the birth of the Los Angeles art scene. their newest exhibition on display. This exhibit, on display from September 29, 2011, to April 1, 2012, takes viewers on a connected journey of
personal stories and creativity to discover the people and places throughout Los Angeles that
made it possible to experience the visual expression of African Americans in art during the
1940s – 1980s. 

A video of interviews with the artists plays at the entrance of the gallery and sets the tone for the exhibit.

“It’s our art. It’s not anybody else’s art,” says painter Samella Lewis. “We have to validate ourselves if it’s going to be authentic. White folks tend to only validate in terms of their vision.”

Former civil rights activist, now senior lecturer of both African American studies and communication studies at UCLA, is one of three co-curators for the “Places of Validation, Art & Progression” exhibit. According to Von Blum, “Places of Validation, Art & Progression” aims to explore the history of the African American struggles and attitudes that resulted from being excluded from the mainstream art community in Los Angeles. The works in the exhibition span from figurative to political.

For more information on the California African American Museum visit

www.caamuseum.org or call (213) 744-7432. Admission is always free.

Read the press release.

http://www.intersectionssouthla.org/index.php/story/new_exhibit_opens_at_california_african_american_museum/

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