In honor of Black History Month, the Southern Utah Museum of Art is holding a special film screening to highlight the work of contemporary Black artists Kerry James Marshall and Latoya Ruby Frazier.
Held tonight from 6-7 p.m. in the Sterling R. Church Auditorium in the Sharwan Smith Student Center, the event is free and open to the public and doesn’t require any prior registration.
Short films by Art21, an artistry database that puts together episodes based on different artists, of Marshall and Frazier will be screened.
Morgan Parker, the visitor services and event associate at SUMA, has been planning and developing the event alongside SUMA director Jessica Kinsey.
“We have been thinking about doing something for Black History Month this year because to my knowledge, SUMA hasn’t done anything in the past,” Parker said. “We felt like this was the year to do it.”
SUU lecturer of art Randall Cabe will introduce Marshall, while Rheana Gardner, associate professor of photography, will introduce Frazier.
“These art and design faculty that will be presenting about the artists know their work very well,” Parker said. “They will give a little bit more background on the artists prior to the film screening.”
Parker plans to use the event as a platform to educate the community about Black artists and get their stories told through the short films.
“A lot of times, Black artists specifically go unnoticed, especially down here in Cedar City because we don’t have that representation and it’s important to acknowledge it,” Parker said.
In addition to learning about the artists, Parker pointed out that the audience will be exposed to different mediums of art, as Marshall is a painter and Frazier is a photographer.
“People are going to get real insight into these artists and see why their stories are important and get a new perspective on different mediums of art,” Parker said. “We will see their stories told through their art and that will provide a little bit of background into their personal lives as well.”
For more information on SUMA and future events at the art museum, contact sumamarketing@suu.edu.
Story by: Elizabeth Armstrong
news@suunews.net
Photos courtesy of SUMA
