THE ROMARE BEARDEN SOUTHERN SENSIBILITY TRIBUTE GALA - September 25, 2008
The Romare Bearden Southern Sensibility Tribute Gala, will be held on September 25, 2008, at the exquisite new Espace on West 42nd Street and 11th Avenue. The theme this year will focus on the impact of the South, it’s people and culture, on Bearden’s art and life. Bank of America will be one of our honorees.
Our annual galas celebrate Bearden’s extraordinary life, art and legacy as well as gain support for our mission and raise awareness about our programs. Proceeds from the event support the Foundation’s efforts to create arts and educational opportunities for young people and to inspire them with examples from Bearden’s own life and work. As well proceeds support programs that nurture the artistic and professional development of talented, aspiring young African American artists and scholars. Together these goals, along with preserving and perpetuating Bearden’s rich artistic and intellectual legacy, ensure that he continues to have an impact on this and future generations.
For more information and to purchase tickets: http://benefitoffice.org/bearden/
Romare Bearden in The Classroom – NEW VISUAL ARTS CURRICULUM AVAILABLE!!!
‘Produced by the Romare Bearden Foundation, the content rich curriculum, Romare Bearden in the Classroom, includes lesson plans, an annotated teacher’s guide, art reproductions/posters, a CD-ROM and historical timeline. All lessons are aligned with the NYC Blueprint for the Arts and the NEA curriculum standards.
For more info and to purchase curriculum email alisha.wormsley@beardenfoundation.org
BEARDEN ART GALLERY
On view in the Bearden Foundation Gallery now through July 31, 2008: Romare Bearden's ‘Composition Lessons'
For more info click here.
ANNUAL ROMARE BEARDEN TRIBUTE GALA
On the evening of September 24, 2007 the Foundation held its annual Romare Bearden Tribute Gala at the exquisite Bridgewaters in New York City. This year’s theme, “celebrating the literary Bearden,” recognized the artist as scholar, intellectual and author of several books on art and aesthetics and of a delightful, award winning children’s book. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. educator, scholar and author and Derek Walcott, poet and Nobel Laureate, strong supporters of Bearden's legacy and Gabriella E. Morris, President of the Prudential Foundation, a long time supporter of art, culture and education, were honored. Many thanks to the Mistress of Ceremony, Deborah Roberts, Correspondent for ABC News, for her delightful presence. This wonderful evening would not of been possible without gala co-chairs: Johanne Bryant-Reid, a retired Merrill Lynch executive and Foundation Board member and Tonya Lewis Lee, producer and author.
CHICAGO SYMPOSIUM - IN RETROSPECT
The well attended symposium, Romare Bearden in the Modernist Tradition, which was funded by the Terra Foundation for American Art, was held on April 20 – 21, 2007, at Columbia College Chicago at the Film Row Cinema Theater. The symposium, part of the Bearden National Symposium series, launched in 1998 as a legacy program of the Foundation, encourages and supports new scholarship on Bearden in association with colleges and universities across the country.
Cultural theorist and critic Kobena Mercer PhD open the symposium on Friday, April 20th with a key note address titled Romare Bearden’s Modernism: Critical Dialogues in the Diaspora Imagination. Dr. Mercer is Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Visual Culture and Media at Middlesex University in London. He is also the author of Romare Bearden: African American Modernism at Mid-Century in Art History and Romare Bearden, 1964 Collage as Kunstwollen.
On Saturday, April 21st a full day of presentations included scholarly papers and conversations between Bearden’s colleagues and friends that were based on the key themes like: Bearden’s practice in relation to early modernism and the artists and artistic movements that influenced him; the interchange between Bearden and his peers in several disciplines; Bearden’s influence on subsequent generations of artists as a towering figure in African American art and his far-reaching influence in the African Diaspora; and Bearden’s use of photography, photostat and other technology through the lens of post-modernist discourse and practice.
Presenters included:
- Emma Amos, Artist, Professor of Art, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey,
- Dawoud Bey, Artist, Professor of Photography, Columbia College Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- Allen Edmunds Master printmaker and President of Brandywine Workshop, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- Melvin Edwards, Artist, Professor of Art, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey (Retired)
- Diedra Harris-Kelley, Artist, Program Associate, Romare Bearden Foundation
- Geoffrey Jacques, Ph.D., Poet and Critic, Faculty of English Department, Lehman College, City University of New York, Bronx, New York
- Greg Foster Rice, Ph.D., Art History, Assistant Professor, Art History, Columbia College Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- Courtney Martin, Ph.D. candidate, Art History, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
- Paul D. Miller/DJ Spooky, Conceptual artist, writer, and musician.
- Amy Mooney, Ph.D., Professor, Art History, Columbia College Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- Robert O'Meally, Zora Neale Hurston Professor of American Literature and Director of the Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia University New York, New York
- Kym Pinder, Associate Professor of Art History and Director of the Master of Arts in Art History program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- Raél Jero Salley, Ph.D. candidate, The University of Chicago, The Committee on the History of Culture. Adjunct Faculty, Columbia College Chicago and The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
- Helen Shannon, Ph.D., Art History, Director of Museum Education, University of the Arts, Philadelphia
- William T. Williams, Artist, Professor of Art, Brooklyn College, City University of New York
A publication based on the symposium Romare Bearden in the Modernist Tradition, sponsored by the Terra Foundation for American Art, will be available in early 2008
Romare Bearden in the Classroom
Romare Bearden in the Classroom, the Foundation’s new and comprehensive curriculum was made possible with funding from JP Morgan Chase and the Ford Foundation. It includes a series of 4 color lesson plans, an educator’s guide, a CD Rom of color reproductions and 5 posters. The curriculum is being distributed locally and nationally through educators’ workshops.
Educators who would like to attend a workshop or host one in their institution should contact us at education@beardenfoundation.org
Educators' Workshop
The first national educators’ workshop took place on Wednesday, April 25th at the Museum of the Art Institute of Chicago. Sponsored by the Terra Foundation for American Art and was presented in cooperation with the Chicago Public Schools and the Museum of the Art Institute of Chicago who hosted the workshop for sixty five educators. They represented Chicago Public Schools and several museums and community arts organizations. The day long workshop began with a greeting from the museum’s Director James Cuno and key note address by Director of Education Bob Eskridge. An introduction to the curriculum by Education Specialist and the curriculum’s author Rise Wilson included ways to integrate its content into existing lesson plans and segments of the film The Art of Romare Bearden. The participants were given a rare opportunity to view two Bearden prints in the museum’s print study room which was followed by a tour of works, similar to those that inspired Bearden, by the museum’s education staff. The final presentation by art historian Kymberly N. Pinder, Ph.D. Romare Bearden and August Wilson: History Lessons, examined the unspoken dialogue between Wilson and Bearden’s work. The latter underscored the scope of the artist’s influence and his appeal for artists in several disciplines.
Cinque Artists Program (CAP)
Through the newly established Cinque Artists Program (CAP), the Foundation continues the legacy of Cinque Gallery, an important venue for African American artists that was co-founded by Bearden, Ernest Crichlow and Norman Lewis in 1969, and that closed permanently in 2004. As the program is developed over the next several years, CAP will assist artists at various stages by supporting them artistically and in their career and professional development through scholarships, workshops, opportunities for networking with artists and arts professionals and stipend for travel.
The program was formally launched on Thursday, March 29 with a reception at the Foundation that honored Cinque’s former director, Ruth Jett.
Two components of CAP have been launched: the Romare Bearden Scholarship at the Harlem School of the Arts and Artists Professional Development Workshops.
The Romare Bearden Scholarship at the Harlem School of the Arts
As part of it's new Cinque Artists Program, in September 2006 the Foundation launched a scholarship program at the Harlem School of the Arts. The Romare Bearden Visual Arts Scholarship at the Harlem School of the Arts is awarded to talented African American high school students enrolled in the school's visual arts program. Two scholarship recipients were selected from among the school's College Prep Program enrollees. To be selected for the program students must demonstrate financial need, a sincere interest and passion for the visual arts and a strong aspiration to continue their educational pursuits in art schools and colleges. The annual support includes tuition, registration and materials fees.
To be considered all applicants must meet the following criteria:
- be of African descent
- be enrolled in High school
- be between 15-17 years
- have a B+ average or above in school
- be interested in pursuing a career in visual arts
- establish financial need (based on Princeton Scholarship Review criteria)
- be enrolled in the Harlem School of the Arts College Prep Program
For more information contact the Harlem School of the Arts at 212.926.4100 or info@harlemschoolofthearts.org
The Romare Bearden Visual Arts Scholarship at the Harlem School of the Arts has been made possible with support from the Estate of Nanette Bearden.
Artist Professional Development Workshops
(Fall 2007)
The Workshops bring together experts in the field to assist artists at all experience levels and stages in their career to enhance their career-building skills and opportunities for representation, exhibition and critical review. In the fall of 2007, the Foundation will offer the workshops in three general subject areas: artistic development, career management and financial management. Artistic development provides a forum to discuss the creative process and to view their art practice within a professional context at the end of their formal education. Career management assist artists navigate the gallery and museum system. Financial management provide information about the business side of being an artist, finding money for their work from grants and fellowships, protecting intellectual property, managing the money from sales and employment, preparing for retirement, etc.
For more information on the Fall workshop schedule, call: 212-924-0455. Workshops are free but reservations will be required
Phase I of Website Upgrade Project Completed!
With significant funding from the AT&T Foundation, the Romare Bearden Foundation has undertaken an extensive revision and upgrade of its website. The result is a visually arresting, content-rich, more easily navigable site that offers comprehensive information about Romare Beardens art and life and about the Foundations mission of preserving and perpetuating his legacy. The project involved updating and adding new content and sections, including a great Education Resources section and a comprehensive Timeline of Beardens life and accomplishments. Thanks to DesignPolice and fluency, the two firms that worked on the web design. Special acknowledgement to the Foundations team that worked on content and editing: Grace Stanislaus, Executive Director and Ronald Jackson, Board member and multimedia specialist, worked closely with Ellie Tweedy who volunteered an extraordinary amount of time editing the site and ensuring the accuracy of its content.