The Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia is presenting the “Freedom Dreams” exhibition through Aug. 9, using moving images to explore what freedom means for Black people in the United States.
According to an Action News 6abc report, the exhibition features five works by intergenerational artists from across the United States, curated to examine Black radical imagination and social change through culture.
Philadelphia-based artist David Hartt is one of the individuals connected with the project.
“His work is called ‘On Exactitude in Science (Watts),’ and it looks at the historically African American community of Watts in Los Angeles,” said James Claiborne, co-curator of “Freedom Dreams” and vice president for engagement at the Barnes Foundation.
Ja’Tovia Gary’s “Quiet as It’s Kept” weaves Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye into the narrative to explore Black female identity, sexuality, and colorism.
Garrett Bradley’s “America” combines contemporary footage with rare material from the 1913 silent film Lime Kiln Club Field Day to depict Black everyday life and joy in the early 20th century as a form of freedom.
Tourmaline’s Pollinator meditates on the life and impact of trans artist and activist Marsha P. Johnson.
Arthur Jafa’s “Love Is the Message, The Message is Death” is a seven-minute montage that reflects contemporary Black life and prompts reflection on freedom.
“This idea that we get to step back from our phones and our television screens and our laptops and bring the moving image into the built environment of a museum, and of a gallery, perhaps gives us a different understanding of what we’re seeing and what we’re consuming, and how it has implications for our understanding of U.S. history,” Claiborne explained to 6abc.