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By Gail-Agnes Musikavanhu
Hometown Weekly Correspondent
Up a flight of stairs in the serene halls of The Davis Museum sits a collection of twenty-two vibrant paintings by Jacob Lawrence, all the more striking against the white walls of the exhibition room. The series, titled “The Legend of John Brown,” portrays the story of the abolitionist and his complicated legacy through twenty-two paintings – each one paired with a descriptive title from Lawrence’s own research to tell Brown’s story in this unique way.
The Davis acquired the series from the Detroit Institute of Art in 2015. After years of development, the exhibit finally debuted last month on the 21st of September. Although this is the series’ first time on show, “The Legend of John Brown” is the museum’s second Lawrence exhibit; a piece that was purchased at the same time as the series, “Confrontation at the Bridge,” headlined Lawrence’s debut some time ago. These inclusions have been described as having “filled an important gap in the museum’s representation of American art” by the Davis Museum, as an artist as celebrated as Jacob Lawrence could only add to the museum’s strong collection of African-American art.
Lawrence is widely considered one of the most important artists of the 20th century, contributing many stunning portrayals of African-American life and history throughout his years. After noting the lack of black history in schools during his time, Lawrence specifically sought to highlight beacons in African-American history through biographic series. His hope was to educate people about important historical figures through his artwork.
“The Legend of John Brown” is Lawrence’s fifth series, and it follows the radical abolitionist in his quest to end slavery in America, chronicling the turbulent journey that lead to his ultimate death. The pieces are presented with their respective original titles just as Lawrence intended - however, the experience is enhanced by the surplus of information provided by the Davis app.
Exhibit curator Amanda Gilvin worked to bring Lawrence’s vision to life by maintaining the simple presentation of his pieces while contextualizing the art, thereby enriching the experience for the viewer. “I decided to respect his vision for the series,” Gilvin explains. “Those are titles that he wrote. Some are short sentences, but some are two or three sentences long! He had a historical narrative that he was conveying, so I really wanted to respect his vision for the project.”
To give way to this vision, Gilvin collaborated with Wellesley College alumnae Siobhan Finlay and Veronica Mora to provide historical background on the Davis app – an easy-to-download feature that takes the viewer through a virtual tour of the series. The app includes additional imagery and information that adds to the detail of the exhibit.
Along with this additional source, the museum will be hosting a series of events detailing the history behind Lawrence’s art that are available to the public, including a guest lecture by art historian Leslie King-Hammond and a talk by exhibit curator Amanda Gilvin herself.
For more information on the exhibit and the upcoming events, visit www.wellesley.edu/davismuseum.
“The Legend of John Brown” will be up through the 16th of December.
