When Nina Simone said in a 1968 interview, “An artist’s duty, as far as I’m concerned, is to reflect the times,” she spoke not only for herself, but for so many who were called to react, reflect, and respond to the searing injustices of post-war American society.
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“I think that is true of painters, sculptors, poets, [and] musicians. At this crucial time in our lives, when everything is so desperate, when every day is a matter of survival, I don’t think you can help but be involved. That to me is the definition of an artist,” Simone continued. To see the expressions and hear the voices of those being oppressed is essential, but it requires more than just the act of creating. In 1960’s America, it would require an overall rethinking of the practices of inherently racist institutions already in place to begin representing the underlying truth, beauty, and wisdom of the Black experience in America.
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And so it was during the fall of 1963, two local groups of African American photographers in Harlem held a joint meeting in response to the under-representation of Black photographers in the art world—Group 35, which included James Ray Francis, Louis Draper, Herman Howard, Earl James and Calvin Mercer and another group comprised of Herb Randall, Albert Fennar, Shawn Walker and James Mannas. And together they decided to form theKamoinge Workshop.
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