Searching for Augusta Savage Screening
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About this event
Event lasts 3 hours
ALL AGES
Augusta Savage has been called one of the most influential contributors to the Harlem Renaissance, and one of the most enterprising, as she did so much to support the careers of other Black artists. Almost 85 years ago, sculptor Augusta Savage opened the first gallery in the U.S. dedicated to exhibiting the work of Black artists. She also founded two organizations that provided free art education and training to over 2,500 people, and mentored a generation of venerated artists, including Romare Bearden, Gwendolyn Knight, and Jacob Lawrence. Savage was also the only Black artist, and one of four women to receive a commission for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. Augusta Savage created a 16-foot sculpture depicting a choir of twelve Black children singing, arranged like strings on a harp held up by the hand of God that was inspired by the lyrics of the Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” and was the most visited and photographed exhibit at the Fair. This sculpture is just one example of how Savage centered Black life and the Black body in her art. Yet little of her work has survived the test of time, and even less is known about her extensive accomplishments. A documentary about her life and legacy, SEARCHING FOR AUGUSTA SAVAGE, investigates why nearly half of the approximately 160 pieces of sculpture Savage created have been lost, and why evidence of her achievements appear to have been erased.
FRIDAY, OCT 11 12:00PM-1:30PM
Three Showings:
1:30pm
2:30pm
3:30pm
Enjoy a talkback with Sandy Rattley, Executive Producer/Director and moderated by Najee Dorsey, Founder/ CEO, Black Art In America.
OPENING RECEPTION
FRIDAY, OCT 11
SCREENING #1 - 1:30PM-2:30PM SCREENING OF SEARCHING FOR AUGUSTA SAVAGE
Augusta Savage was the first person in the U.S. to open a gallery dedicated to African American art. A Harlem Renaissance sculptor and art educator, she was also one of the first Black women art activists of her time and fought for the inclusion of Black artists in the mainstream canon. Art historian Jeffreen M. Hayes, Ph.D. explores Savage’s legacy, and why her artwork has been largely erased.
Followed by a Talkback with Sandra Rattley, Executive Producer/Director; Moderated by Najee Dorsey, FOUNDER/ CEO, BLACK ART IN AMERICA
SCREENING #2 - 2:30PM-3:30PM SCREENING OF SEARCHING FOR AUGUSTA SAVAGE
Augusta Savage was the first person in the U.S. to open a gallery dedicated to African American art. A Harlem Renaissance sculptor and art educator, she was also one of the first Black women art activists of her time and fought for the inclusion of Black artists in the mainstream canon. Art historian Jeffreen M. Hayes, Ph.D. explores Savage’s legacy, and why her artwork has been largely erased.
Followed by a Talkback with Sandra Rattley, Executive Producer/Director; Moderated by Najee Dorsey, FOUNDER/ CEO, BLACK ART IN AMERICA
SCREENING #3: 3:30PM-4:30PM SCREENING OF SEARCHING FOR AUGUSTA SAVAGE
Augusta Savage was the first person in the U.S. to open a gallery dedicated to African American art. A Harlem Renaissance sculptor and art educator, she was also one of the first Black women art activists of her time and fought for the inclusion of Black artists in the mainstream canon. Art historian Jeffreen M. Hayes, Ph.D. explores Savage’s legacy, and why her artwork has been largely erased.
Followed by a Talkback with Sandra Rattley, Executive Producer/Director; Moderated by Najee Dorsey, FOUNDER/ CEO, BLACK ART IN AMERICA