A movement in all directions: the legacies of the great migration at the Brooklyn Museum brings together 12 contemporary artists to reflect on the complex impact of this period on their lives, as well as on social and cultural life.
Between 1915 and 1970, in the wake of racial terror during the post-Reconstruction era, millions of black Americans fled their homes to other parts of the South and other parts of the country. This remarkable movement of people, known as the Great Migration, caused a sea change in the demographic, economic, and sociopolitical makeup of the United States.
Co-curated by the Mississippi Museum of Art and the Baltimore Museum of Art, the exhibition includes newly commissioned works ranging from large-scale installation, immersive film and tapestry to photography, painting and mixed media. . Featured artists are Akea Brionne, Mark Bradford, Zoë Charlton, Larry W. Cook, Torkwase Dyson, Theaster Gates Jr., Allison Janae Hamilton, Leslie Hewitt, Steffani Jemison, Robert Pruitt, Jamea Richmond-Edwards and Carrie Mae Weems.
The presentation of the Brooklyn Museum centers Brooklyn as another important Great Migration site, highlighting historical and contemporary census data on the borough’s migration patterns. Visitors are encouraged to share their own personal and family stories of migration through an oral history ‘capsule’ available in the exhibit galleries.
A movement in all directions: the legacies of the great migration is on view until June 25 at Brooklyn Museum At New York.
For more information, visit brooklynmuseum.org.
