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Black History

These stories illuminate the cultural contributions of Black artists and creatives from both Africa and the global diaspora.

A Self-Portrait painting by the African American Painter Horace Pippin. A Black man sits against a blue background from his shoulders up looking directly towards us with deep brown eyes. He is wearing a black suit, off-white yellowish suit, and a striped tie with brown and a golden-mustard yellow.

Considering Horace Pippin

How has art history overlooked the crucial role disability played in Pippin's painting?
Bryan Martin July 26
The artist Lauren Halsey in colorful clothing sitting before her Roof Garden Commission, a giant Egyptian-inspired temple.

Artist Interview—Lauren Halsey: The Roof Garden Commission

Go behind the scenes with artist Lauren Halsey, who discusses the inspiration and making of The Met’s 2023 Roof Garden Commission.

May 10
A pair of black men with feathers decorating their heads and body next to a cup covered with a lid

The Linsky Project: Reinterpreting Porcelain Figures

New interpretive labels help visitors navigate the role of the decorative arts in negotiating race, labor, colonialism, and global commerce.
Marlise Brown April 12
Black and white photograph of school child

A Snapshot of Black Photographers in Watson Library's Collection

Celebrating Black History Month in the Stacks
Angela Washington February 22
Powder Horn of John Mahard

Rediscovering John Bush

Recent research sheds light on the life and work of a Massachusetts militiaman and influential horn carver.
Pierre Terjanian February 8
Print of the profile of a black woman with light blue outlines and sculptural twisted hair in front of a vibrant orange circle

Everyday Fantastical

Tanekeya Word shares the knowledge and experiences behind Starshine & Clay, a fantastical embodiment of the feelings she has about Black girlhood and Black womanhood.
Tanekeya Word February 3

Rashida Bumbray

Civic Practice Partnership artist-in-residence Rashida Bumbray is a performance artist, curator, choreographer, and the Director of Culture and Art at the Open Society Foundations. Her work focuses on Black urban spaces and communities, and what it means to be in a space that has layers of generational trauma.

January 19
Closeup of a handwritten name, "Dave," engraved onto a brown and yellow stone surface.

The Potters

Across the world, we find rich seams of clay—created from the perfect combination of animal, vegetable, mineral, and circumstance.
Camille T. Dungy January 12
Detail of a jar made by the enslaved potter Dave (later known as David Drake).

Examining Storage Jars from the American South

Scientific research on food residue found in nineteenth-century stoneware vessels produced by enslaved artisans sheds light on the contents once stored inside.
Adriana Rizzo January 10

The James Van Der Zee Archive

James Van Der Zee, the world-renowned chronicler of Black life in New York City during the Harlem Renaissance and for decades thereafter, was a virtuoso portraitist and one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century.

Dec 13, 2022
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