This maxim reflects the bond between writer Tom Dent and his library at Amistad.
Shakespeare In Black: African American Interpretations of the Bard
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Part of an international initiative marking the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death, Tulane University’s School of Liberal Arts is hosting a traveling exhibition of the First Folio, the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays. Assembled after the playwright’s death and published in 1623, the First Folio is the only source for eighteen of Shakespeare’s plays, many of his best known, including Julius Caesar, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, The Tempest, and As You Like It. It is considered one of the most important secular books of English literature ever printed.
Copies of the First Folio will be on display in all 50 states and in Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico during 2016. The Newcomb Art Museum on Tulane’s campus is the Louisiana site for First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare, which will be on display from May 9-31. More information on this exhibition and related programming can be found on the Tulane First Folio website and the site for the Newcomb Art Museum.
As part of an “archival circuit” related to the Shakespeare exhibition on Tulane’s campus, the Amistad Research Center is currently featuring a small exhibition entitled Shakespeare in Black: African American Interpretations of the Bard. This exhibition examines African American treatments of Shakespeare in the fine arts, literature and drama. On display are works related to sculptures of Shakespearian actors and actresses produced by Richmond Barthé in the 1930s and 1940s, Langston Hughes’ 1942 blues-inspired poetry collection Shakespeare in Harlem and a later play by the same title that was derived from Hughes’ poetry, as well as photographs and promotional material related to Paul Robeson’s acclaimed portrayal of Othello during the 1940s.
Amistad’s exhibition will run concurrently with the First Folio exhibition from May 9-31. Those interested in learning more about Shakespeare and the African American experience are encouraged to listen to two excellent podcasts produced by the Folger Shakespeare Library. They are episodes 19 and 20 of the Shakespeare Unlimited series.
Images from the Richmond Bathe Papers, Carol Brice Papers, Edwin Salk Collection, Countee Cullen Papers, and library collection. Images from Amistad’s website, newsletters, and blogs cannot be reproduced without permission.
#WilliamShakespeare #RichmondBarthe #LangstonHughes #PaulRobeson #AfricanAmericanart #AfricanAmericanliterature #AfricanAmericandrama
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Kathe Hambrick is the Founder and former Executive Director of the River Road African American Museum (RRAAM), established in 1994 as Louisiana’s first African American Museum. She is a past President of the national Association of African American Museums (AAAM). She served as the Chief Curator and Director of Interpretation for the West Baton Rouge Museum for four years. Hambrick was born in New Orleans and spent half her life in California where she received an undergraduate degree in English and a minor in African American Studies from California State University Long Beach.
Hambrick is a Public Historian with a passion for collecting, preserving and interpreting history for diverse audiences. Her thirty-one-year career as a museum professional includes expertise in program development, interpretative planning, curation, grant writing, fundraising, and board governance. She led the effort to preserve three slave cemeteries and six historic buildings in Ascension Parish.
She is considered an expert on the history and culture of African Americans in communities along the Mississippi River. Kathe Hambrick’s interviews include local, national, and international media, the BBC Learning Channel, CBS Morning News, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. The consulting firm, 2PRESERVE was established by Hambrick in 2021 to provide cultural resources and guidance to corporations, museums, cultural centers, government agencies, and faith-based organizations.
Throughout her 31-year career, Kathe has curated over one hundred exhibits, including The Rural Roots of Jazz, African Influences on Louisiana Cuisine, Creole Du Monde, and The Square Collection which featured original art by Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthé, and Tina Allen. Her most recent exhibit is the GU272 of Ascension: The Jesuit and Episcopal Connection to Slavery.
Kathe is the author and co-author of several books:
Kathe Hambrick is the Founder and former Executive Director of the River Road African American Museum (RRAAM), established in 1994 as Louisiana’s first African American Museum. She is a past President of the national Association of African American Museums (AAAM). She served as the Chief Curator and Director of Interpretation for the West Baton Rouge Museum for four years. Hambrick was born in New Orleans and spent half her life in California where she received an undergraduate degree in English and a minor in African American Studies from California State University Long Beach.
Hambrick is a Public Historian with a passion for collecting, preserving and interpreting history for diverse audiences. Her thirty-one-year career as a museum professional includes expertise in program development, interpretative planning, curation, grant writing, fundraising, and board governance. She led the effort to preserve three slave cemeteries and six historic buildings in Ascension Parish.
She is considered an expert on the history and culture of African Americans in communities along the Mississippi River. Kathe Hambrick’s interviews include local, national, and international media, the BBC Learning Channel, CBS Morning News, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. The consulting firm, 2PRESERVE was established by Hambrick in 2021 to provide cultural resources and guidance to corporations, museums, cultural centers, government agencies, and faith-based organizations.
Throughout her 31-year career, Kathe has curated over one hundred exhibits, including The Rural Roots of Jazz, African Influences on Louisiana Cuisine, Creole Du Monde, and The Square Collection which featured original art by Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthé, and Tina Allen. Her most recent exhibit is the GU272 of Ascension: The Jesuit and Episcopal Connection to Slavery.
Kathe is the author and co-author of several books:
Kathe Hambrick is the Founder and former Executive Director of the River Road African American Museum (RRAAM), established in 1994 as Louisiana’s first African American Museum. She is a past President of the national Association of African American Museums (AAAM). She served as the Chief Curator and Director of Interpretation for the West Baton Rouge Museum for four years. Hambrick was born in New Orleans and spent half her life in California where she received an undergraduate degree in English and a minor in African American Studies from California State University Long Beach.
Hambrick is a Public Historian with a passion for collecting, preserving and interpreting history for diverse audiences. Her thirty-one-year career as a museum professional includes expertise in program development, interpretative planning, curation, grant writing, fundraising, and board governance. She led the effort to preserve three slave cemeteries and six historic buildings in Ascension Parish.
She is considered an expert on the history and culture of African Americans in communities along the Mississippi River. Kathe Hambrick’s interviews include local, national, and international media, the BBC Learning Channel, CBS Morning News, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. The consulting firm, 2PRESERVE was established by Hambrick in 2021 to provide cultural resources and guidance to corporations, museums, cultural centers, government agencies, and faith-based organizations.
Throughout her 31-year career, Kathe has curated over one hundred exhibits, including The Rural Roots of Jazz, African Influences on Louisiana Cuisine, Creole Du Monde, and The Square Collection which featured original art by Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthé, and Tina Allen. Her most recent exhibit is the GU272 of Ascension: The Jesuit and Episcopal Connection to Slavery.
Kathe is the author and co-author of several books: