Celestial Praise for Seneca Village

The Celestial Praise House for Seneca Village opened on January 16, 2010, just in time for Black History Month. The exhibit features a sculpture, which represents Seneca Village, created by Jose' J. Mapily and Dr. Leslie King-Hammond, two distinguished Maryland-based artists and educators.

What is Seneca Village? Seneca Village was a 19th century predominately African American community situated between 82nd and 89th Streets and Seventh and Eighth Avenues in New York. It was the first time African Americans owned property in 19th century New York. However, due to New Yorkers deep desire for a public park, the state legislature seized their land via eminent domain, turning their residential dream into a nightmare, making it the last African American residential community in New York during the 19th century. Soon after this action was taken, their homes, churches, cemeteries, and a school were razed to make way for the construction of Central Park.

The sculpture, which is the centerpiece of the exhibit, honors their determination to empower themselves economically and politically, an African American man had to own $250 worth of property in order to vote. In addition, the sculpture developed by King-Hammond and Mapily serves to pay deep homage to the residents faith and hope for a better life in a city which abolished slavery shortly after they began to reside in Seneca Village. Adding more symbolism to the sculpture, Mapily designed the celestial praise house to hover over the symbolic village, projecting the faith, hope, and love the residents had to have as their fellow Americans razed their dream.

As you can see, the sculpture says a lot about African American life in Seneca Village during the 19th century. But there is only one way to experience it: by visiting the Banneker-Douglass Museum. Come and explore how the history of Seneca Village inspired and influenced two highly skilled artists to create an exquisite work of art.

Pictured from left to right: Museum Patron, Jose' J. Mapily, Dr. Leslie King-Hammond, Commissioner Anita Neal Powell, Banneker-Douglass Museum Foundation Treasurer Linda Simms, Aris T. Allen, Jr., and Banneker-Douglass Museum Volunteer Richard Everett.

Photo by Amelia Harris

African American History Tours of Annapolis

One of the most frequent requests I receive in February deals with African American history tours in Annapolis. This year I am pleased to announce the Banneker-Douglass Museum is working with Watermark Tours and will be the final stop on their African American Heritage Tour. This tour, run in partnership with the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation is a two hour walking tour of Annapolis highlighting key historical sites including the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial and the Thurgood Marshall Memorial.

The tour will be offered every Saturday in February beginning on 6 February 2010. Tours depart from the Information Booth at City Dock at 1:00 p.m. every Saturday and run two hours. Reservations are required and be aware you will need to bring a photo id along with you.

Tour prices are as follows:
$16.00 Adults
$10.00 Children 3-11
Free Ages 2 & Under

To purchase tickets, visit Watermark's website at http://www.watermarkjourney.com/ or you can purchase them from your guide at prior to the tour. For more information call 410.216.7600 or visit the African American Heritage Tour page on their website.

Don't forget to come into the museum at the end of your tour to see our new exhibitions which opened 2 weeks ago!

New Program Calendar Available

The Banneker-Douglass Museum February-March 2010 program calendar is now available. Check it out at www.bdmuseum.com.

Upcoming programs include:

6 February 2010 10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
The Seneca Village Collaboration Praise House Art Program with Leslie King-Hammond and José J. Mapily

13 February 2010 1:00 p.m.-2:30 p.m.
Back to Africa? Book Discussion and Author Signing with Charles Nelson

13 February 2010 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.
Morgan State University Choir Concert at the Four Winds Performing Arts Center

20 February 2010 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Banneker-Douglass Museum Family Tour

26 February 2010 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.
Music through the Ages Community Concert at Annapolis High School

27 February 2010 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Picturing the Promise: Making Photo and Memory Quilts with Dr. Joan Gaither at the Lamond-Riggs Public Library, Washington, DC hosted by the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture

6 March 2010 1:00 p.m.-2:30 p.m.
Race Women, Race Man lecture by Dr. Sharon Harley, Chair of the African American Studies Program, University of Maryland, College Park

13 March 2010 1:00 p.m.-2:30 p.m.
The Science of Genealogy: DNA Testing with Gene-All-Of-Us founder Lyndra Marshall and Gina Paige, President of African Ancestry, Inc.

19 March 2010 3:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Genealogy Resource Fair at Sojourner-Douglass College hosted by the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation

20 March 2010
Maryland Day celebration at the Banneker-Douglass Museum

27 March 2010 11:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
3rd Annual Ladies Hats and Tea: Changing Perspectives

PORTRAITS OF COURAGE

A new exhibition at Banneker-Douglass showcases eight of Maryland’s African American heroes. The men and women depicted in these portraits represent African American achievement throughout Maryland’s state history in the fields of science, law publishing, politics, and civil rights activism. The portraits, six by Hughie Lee-Smith: Benjamin Banneker, Frederick Douglass, Thurgood Marshall, Harriet Tubman, John H. Murphy, and Lillie Benjamin Banneker, Frederick Douglass, Thurgood Marshall, Harriet Tubman, John H. Murphy, and Lillie, Carroll Jackson. Also included are the portraits of Herbert M. Frisby by Oliver Patrick Scott, and Nathaniel Gibbs’ painting of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. And the portrait of Herbert M. Frisby by Oliver Patrick Scott, and Nathaniel Gibbs’ painting of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are also representative of the mission of the Banneker-Douglass Museum, which strives to preserve the legacy of African Americans such as those presented here.
The portraits are closely tied to the history of the Banneker-Douglass Museum. The Banneker-Douglass Museum Foundation, Inc. commissioned the Banneker, Douglass, and Marshall portraits in 1976, its first year of existence; the unveiling of the Tubman, Murphy and Jackson portraits marked the 1984 opening of the museum in the former Mt. Moriah A.M.E. Church. The Frisby portrait is part of a major research Collection documenting Frisby’s Arctic exploration; and the King portrait is part of the museum’s holding of materials documenting the Civil Rights Movement. By exhibiting these portraits, we want to commemorate and celebrate the accomplishments of these individuals. The Banneker-Douglass Museum and the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture mission is to educate, document, and display the courage of each of the displayed Marylanders in achieving their goals. The exhibit will be open from January 16, 2010 until June 26, 2010.

Martin Luther King Weekend 2010

This weekend will be a busy one for the Banneker-Douglass Museum. We are opening three new exhibits, hosting an exhibition opening reception, participating in an MLK Day Volunteer Day event, and partnering on a concert.

As a heads up, the museum itself will be closed on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day which is Monday, January 18, 2010. Construction work will be taking place throughout the weekend to repair the roof and we can't have any visitors in the building. There are still plenty of museum-sponsored activities going on this weekend throughout Annapolis even if the building itself isn't open. I hope you can join us for at least one of the festivities listed below.

Celestial Praise House for Seneca Village Exhibition

Opening Reception and Artist Talk

Saturday, 16 January 2010

1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Location: Banneker-Douglass Museum, 84 Franklin St., Annapolis, MD, 21401

Free of charge and open to all ages.

Registration encouraged.

For more information, call 410.216.6180 or email BDMPrograms@goci.state.md.us.

Join artists Leslie King-Hammond and José J. Mapily for the Maryland debut of their artwork Celestial Praise House for Seneca Village. This large-scale plexiglass and beaded artwork depicts a portion of Seneca Village, an African-American settlement in New York’s Central Park. Meet the artists and learn how this amazing artwork was created.

The focal point of this exhibit is a commemorative sculpture by Maryland–based artists Leslie King-Hammond and José J. Mapily called Celestial Praise House for Seneca Village. The piece documents a nineteenth century settlement founded by African Americans and later displaced by New York City’s Central Park, the first urban landscaped park in the United States. This artwork was designed as part of the exhibition Legacies: Contemporary Artists Reflect on Slavery at the New York Historical Society in 2006.

In addition to the Celestial Praise House for Seneca Village piece, several never before seen artifacts from the collections of the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library and the Banneker-Douglass Museum will be on display to highlight the lives of African Americans in Maryland during Seneca Village’s existence. Such objects will include manumission papers from Anne Arundel County, Allegany County, and Howard County; free-born African American verification papers; a receipt from a slave sale in Anne Arundel County; and first edition copies of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass, and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service 2010

Monday, 18 January 2010

11:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Location: Wiley H. Bates Legacy Center, 1101 Smithville St., Annapolis, MD, 21401

Free.

Registration encouraged.

Open to all ages. Participants 16 and under must be accompanied by an adult.

For more information or to register, call 410.897.9207 or email Fay Mauro at Fay@volunteerannearundel.org.

To make Martin Luther King, Jr. Day a “Day On, Not a Day Off,” the Banneker-Douglass Museum is joining with the Volunteer Center for Anne Arundel County, Anne Arundel Conflict Resolution Center, Boys and Girls Clubs of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County, Stanton Center and the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture to offer volunteer opportunities throughout the city of Annapolis. Honor Martin Luther King, Jr. Day 2010 by participating in one of several volunteer opportunities including helping with youth activities at the Bates Boys and Girls Club, making school and family program materials for the Banneker-Douglass Museum, and helping to create a community collage on volunteering in Annapolis and Anne Arundel County. Come meet representatives from many organizations around the area and learn how you can volunteer throughout the year.

Mavis Staples Performs at the Ram's Head On Stage for Martin Luther King Day

Monday, 18 January 2010

8:00 p.m.

Location: Rams Head On Stage, 33 West St., Annapolis, MD, 21401

$65.00 per person

To purchase tickets, visit http://tickets.ramsheadonstage.com.

For more information, call the Rams Head On Stage at 410.268.4545.

In the 1960's Mavis Staples was at the center of the civil rights movement with her family band The Staple Singers. Through message songs like Why am I Treated So Bad? and March up Freedom Highway, Mavis became one of the strong voices of the movement. On January 18, Martin Luther King Day, Mavis will perform many of the freedom songs that she made famous then and now at a special show at Rams Head On Stage. Staples, often marched and performed with Dr. King and throughout her 40-year music career, has continued her message of equality and respect in her music. This performance is anticipated to be a very special one.

Mavis will be backed by her band that recently recorded the album Live: Hope At The Hideout with her. The album was nominated for Best Contemporary Blues Album at the upcoming GRAMMYs--the first GRAMMY nomination Mavis has received for a solo project (she had a few for The Staples Singers and compilations and guest turns.) The Chicago Sun Times says of her performance on the album "Anyone who was hearing this American treasure in concert for the first time learned precious lessons about where we have been and where we are today."

Milestones--2009

This year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Banneker-Douglass Museum. We’ve celebrated with two galas (thank you Banneker-Douglass Museum Foundation, and the team of Governor Martin O’Malley, Lt. Governor Anthony Brown and the Legislative Black Caucus), three exhibits, and a documentary. But 2009 holds special significance for the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture (MCAAHC) as well. The MCAAHC originated in 1969 as the Maryland Commission on Negro History and Culture, by a state bill introduced into the state legislature by Senator Verda Freeman Welcome, America's first African American female state senator. The Commission plans to celebrate this milestone at its next public meeting on December 15, 2009 at M&T Bank stadium. The public is invited to attend this event, which will last from 1:30-4pm.

And finally, 2009 marks the 135^th anniversary of the main building itself. The site began as Mt. Moriah African Methodist Episcopal Church. It served as a house of worship for nearly a century. When the congregation relocated to Bay Ridge Avenue, the purchaser planned to demolition the building. Want to know more? Then come on by!

Black Watermen of the Chesapeake Public Viewing and Quilting Session

Come join the Banneker-Douglass Museum, Dr. Joan M. E. Gaither, and the Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation for two public quilting sessions surrounding the Black Watermen of the Chesapeake quilt. Dates, times, and locations may be found to the right of this posting. The quilt documents the lives of people living and working on the Chesapeake Bay. The sessions this weekend are a follow up to two very popular sessions held last weekend in Annapolis. A total of 180 people came out last weekend to participate and we anticipate even larger crowds this weekend.

To learn more about the Black Watermen of the Chesapeake quilt or Dr. Gaither and her other works, please visit http://www.joangaither.com/.

The Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library Celebrates Its 2nd Anniversary

On Saturday, November 7, 2009, the staff of the Banneker-Douglass Museum, along with business and community leaders, and members of the Annapolis community came together to celebrate the 2nd Anniversary of the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library. The program began with a prayer by Rev. Hunt, the founder and pastor of the Grace of God Outreach Ministries in Baltimore, Maryland. Following the invocation, the audience, led by Denise Strothers, a recording artist, sang Lift Every Voice and Sing, the African American National Anthem. The staff of the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library dedicated a poem, My First Memory (of Librarians), written by Nikki Giovanni, to the library's namesake, Sylvia Gaither Garrison. Then, the business and community leaders dramatically read the writings of such literary giants as Frederick Douglass, Nikki Giovanni, Langston Hughes, Robert Hayden, Dudley Randall, Margaret Walker, Benjamin Banneker, and others. Betty Coleman, president of Friends of the Banneker-Douglass Museum and a board member of the Banneker-Douglass Museum Foundation, ended the event with a stirring reading of a poem entitled Harriet Tubman, written by Margaret Walker.

African Art

AFRICAN ART COLLECTION, Late 19th and 20th Century

Collection includes tools, ceremonial objects, textiles, weapons, personal items, and cooking implements. Artifacts were acquired by purchase and donation from African Art dealers. Objects are representative of the major cultural groups among enslaved Africans in the Chesapeake region. Ceremonial objects include masks worn during initiation rites from Guro, Senufo, and Buale peoples of the Ivory Coast. There are Granary doors from Dogon, and Yakuba or Dan rice spoons. Textiles include kente cloth, mud cloth, and indigo dyed cloth. Decorated tools and personal items include an Ashanti or Buale cosmetic pouch, weaving pulleys, combs, and utility stools.

Wood Ceremonial Doll with leather and beading
1991.01.0003

Holiday Partying at the BDM

Planning a party this holiday season? Why not consider holding your event at the Banneker-Douglass Museum? The BDM can hold 300 people for a standing reception and 150 for theater-style seating. And, of course, the grand historic atmosphere comes free of charge. If you are interested, please contact Jeffrey Greene, Chief of Operations: (410) 216-6180

Public quilting sessions

Beginning next week, Dr. Joan Gaither, the creator of the Journey to the White House quilt that was on display at BDM from January through September of this year, will take her latest quilt on the road inviting anyone interested to add stitches and messages to the quilt.

The quilt, entitled Black Watermen of the Chesapeake, documents African American life on the Chesapeake Bay through images and text. It highlights the men and women who dedicate themselves to the Chesapeake Bay whether it be through working as watermen, living in communities that support activities attached to the Bay, environmental issues, and much much more. While titled Black Watermen of the Chesapeake, the quilt is not only for and/or about the black watermen. It is for anyone and everyone who has had an experience on the Chesapeake Bay.

Dr. Gaither is inviting the public to come and share their Chesapeake Bay experiences on this quilt as a way to help document the many stories of life on the Chesapeake. People may participate by adding stitches and messages to the quilt, sharing stories on video or writing them down, helping identify people important to African American life on the Chesapeake Bay, or bringing photographs of their experiences of the Chesapeake Bay for possible inclusion on the quilt.

If you would like to participate in this project, check out the dates of the public quilting sessions to the right of this posting. For more information, contact the Banneker-Douglass Museum Education Department at 410.216.6180 or email BDMPrograms@goci.state.md.us.

For more information on Dr. Gaither's work, please visit http://obamacommunityquilt.blogspot.com/.

For more information on the African American life on the Chesapeake, please visit http://blackschesapeake.org/

Joan Gaither Public Quilting Sessions

In 2008, Dr. Joan Gaither created the quilt Journey to the White House (J2WH), chronicling President Obama's life story and rise to the White House. The fifth installment of her My American Series, J2WH garnered much attention when she opened up the quilt to members of the public to come and add their own messages and images to the border of the quilt.

Dr. Gaither is now working on the latest quilt in the American Series entitled "Black Watermen of the Chesapeake." The quilt documents the lives of the many African American men and women living and working on the Chesapeake. As part of this quilt, Dr. Gaither is once again inviting the public to come out and add their own stories to the quilt. People are invited to come add a message to the quilt, bring family photos which may be scanned and added to the quilt, and tell their story or that of their family in oral history interviews that will be conducted on site.

Quilting and sewing experience are not required. Registration is not required. This program is free to the public. For more information, contact us at 410.216.6186 or at BDMPrograms@goci.state.md.us.

The public quilting sessions will take place four times at various locations in November. The dates, times, and locations are listed below.

November 12, 2009
10:30 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Bates Legacy Center
1101 Smithville St.
Annapolis, MD 21401

November 14, 2009
10:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Banneker-Douglass Museum
84 Franklin St.
Annapolis, MD 21401

November 20, 2009
2:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Meredith's Seafood and Carry Out
3227 Main Street.
Grasonville, MD 21638

November 21, 2009
Captain Salem Avery Museum
1418 East West Shady Side Rd.
Shady Side, MD 20764

HIDDEN TREASURES UNCOVERED

25th Anniversary Exhibit Artifact Highlight
Artist: JOYCE SCOTT, 1948 -

Joyce J. Scott, one of the most significant artists living and working in Baltimore today, was born in Baltimore and still lives in the Baltimore neighborhood where she was raised. A sculptor, jeweler, printmaker, installation artist, performance artist, and educator, Joyce J. Scott draws from influences as wide-ranging as her media: from African and Native American experiences to comic books, television, popular American culture sources and the contemporary culture as it exists on the streets of her urban Baltimore neighborhood. For more than three decades, this multi-talented artist and provocateur has created objects of exceptional skill and beauty while offering her own distinctive commentary on social issues such as stereotyping, violence, and other forms of social injustice. Joyce Scott specializes in weaving, quilting, beadwork and glass. Scott received a B.F.A. degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art and a M.F.A. in crafts from Institute Allende in Mexico, with further study at Rochester Institute of Technology in New York and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine. -Maryland ArtSource

The Making of an Artist

From Dr. Joni Jones:

Last night, Genevieve Kaplan and I attended the 1st Annual Performing and Visual Arts Gala at the Wiley H. Bates Middle School & MD Hall Integrated Arts Campus. This evening of students and the arts marked the re-opening of the site as an arts magnet school. Their performing and visual arts magnet program with focus on three areas: dance, visual arts and music. In addition to the arts-integrated core classes, there will be artists-in-residence to work with the students.

After the opening remarks, remarks by dignitaries (who were primarily introduced by the BMS students—a job well done, I might add), and ribbon cutting, the large crowd was treated to performances, art installations, and talks throughout the integrated campus. Genevieve and I focused on the African drumming, the string ensemble, and then the works by Paint Annapolis. The Commission and the BDM will definitely work to partner with this campus, so stay tuned.

Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture Annual Meeting

Interested in learning more about Maryland's African American history and culture? Want to be a part of the effort to better preserve and share that history and culture? Then come to the Maryland Commision on African American History and Culture's Annual Meeting to find out how you can get involved!

Thursday, October 15, 2009
10:00 a.m.
Wiley H. Bates Legacy Center
1101 Smithville St.
Annapolis, MD 21401
Free
Registration not required.