If you step into the “Seeking for the Lost” exhibit at the Weisman Art Museum, you’ll find eight portraits by Minneapolis artist Christopher E. Harrison greeting you with haunting stares.
Each piece is like a “ghost whispering,” Harrison said, “giving them voices that they probably didn’t have back then.” The acrylic paintings depict the faces of Black men, women and children who went missing in the years following slavery and the post-Reconstruction era.
One painting features two Black children, with a newspaper clipping above their heads that reads: “Bunchan and Martha Child - These two children have not been seen by their mothers since 1861. They were sold to some man in North Carolina or South Carolina.”
“Not all people were out in the fields picking cotton or tobacco,” Harrison said. “There were people at different social levels and ages. I have portraits of senior citizens, portraits of children, portraits of full-fledged adults, to show the breadth of those who were affected by slavery.”
Another painting depicts a man gazing into the distance like an old photograph. The advertisement says “Smith Fields wishes to find his father William Fields, who was a slave before the war owned by Luke Matthews.”
Harrison’s portraits are paired with advertisements from the “Seeking for the Lost” column in “The Appeal,” a Black-owned St. Paul newspaper that provided a platform for individuals searching for lost family members.
“This format gave people a lot of hope that maybe they could possibly reconnect with their loved ones,” Harrison said. “After coming out of such a tragic experience, now they had this ‘freedom’ to be able to pursue larger ideas and connect with the people they were separated from.”
Curated by Jokeda “Jojo” Bell, executive director of the African American Interpretive Center of Minnesota (AAICM), the exhibit aims to illuminate Black Minnesotan history and highlight the role of Black-owned newspapers in promoting literacy and activism.
“I always try to find something that’s, not necessarily novel but, maybe an aspect of Black Minnesota history that people don’t know,” Bell said. “I want people to be more curious about life in Minnesota for Black people before the 1900s. That’s something I focus on in my own academic work: finding other stories. What other stories are we missing?”
Bell, who frequently came across the “Seeking for the Lost” column in her research at the center, felt compelled to reimagine the lives of those mentioned in the advertisements.
“I think within library systems, there’s a real focus on what we consider archives,” Bell said. “The ‘archive’ as we think of it is really written by white men throughout history in America, right? They’re focusing on certain aspects of their lives but the people who were enslaved were written down as cargo… we don’t have their story.”
The collaboration between Bell and Harrison gives “life to these stories,” Harrison said. “It gives you a window into time about where we’ve come from, where we are and where we can hopefully be on the shoulders of these people who had to do a lot to stay alive and make a life for themselves.”
The exhibit’s themes resonate with Harrison’s recent billboard installation at George Floyd Square in South Minneapolis. This installation is part of the “Social Justice Billboard Project” initiated by Northeast Sculpture Gallery following the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
Harrison’s billboard titled “Siren,” features a Black woman with her eyes shut and mouth agape, as if frozen mid-scream.
“The idea for this series was to talk about the physical reaction to all of these events that were happening to Black people at the time with deaths from law enforcement, and trying to encapsulate that through portraiture,” Harrison said.
“Seeking for the Lost” and “Siren” not only honor the legacy of Black history in Minnesota but also prompt viewers to reflect on the enduring impact of slavery and the ongoing struggle for recognition and justice.
The Weisman Art Museum will host a “Paint & Listen” event with Harrison and Bell on October 17 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.. Art supplies and complimentary snacks will be provided.
Date: Through February 16, 2025
Time: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesday. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday
Location: 333 E. River Road, Minneapolis
Cost: Free
For more information: wam.umn.edu
Comentários