Westmoreland Museum exhibition delves into African American dream
Postponement of his exhibition at The Westmoreland Museum of American Art turned out to be a good thing for artist Stephen Towns. It gave him time to create new works reflecting a shift in attitude.
Originally scheduled to open in January 2021, “Stephen Towns: Declaration & Resistance” will make its debut on Sunday and run through May 8.
“The show would have been very different then,” Towns said. “It was very heavy. Going through covid, I wanted it to be a little lighter. I wanted the show to be a celebration.”
The exhibition includes more than 30 new mixed-media paintings and story quilts, along with older works, that examine the American dream through the lives and labors of Black Americans.
The decision to postpone the exhibition was made in the summer of 2020, said Anne Kraybill, the museum’s Richard M. Scaife Director/CEO.
“I think it’s for the better, because so much of the work in this exhibition is informed by the things that were happening during covid, and the things entwined in these issues of labor and celebrations of labor — and specifically black labor,” Kraybill said. “(The exhibition) is a wonderful talking point for The Westmoreland to have, with our collection of scenes of industry and labor and to really highlight the Black experience in that narrative.”
Persevering in hardship
Towns draws on historical figures, photographs and narratives for his portraits of African Americans in a variety of jobs, from agriculture and coal mining to nursing and the military. The works communicate how the people persevered through extreme hardship — not only by determination, but also by guile and acts of rebellion.
“These are the stories of Black labor in our economy and culture, the hidden stories that were buried or muted or the people who were silenced,” said guest curator Kilolo Luckett.
Born and raised in South Carolina and now living in Baltimore, the 42-year-old Towns said he comes from a lower-income family of laborers and worked in retail, restaurants and manufacturing while building his art career. He is just the second member of his family to attend college.
Through the pandemic, he said he also “gained a deeper appreciation for essential workers risking their lives in the midst of a global health crisis.”
Towns lightens the serious themes of his work with recurring motifs, including halos that signify evolving and understanding, butterflies that signify spirituality, flowers that emanate joy and birds that serve as truth-tellers and soothsayers.
The American flag, which Luckett said is often weaponized politically, also appears in many paintings. That comes from an epiphany Towns said he had while traveling in Africa.
By embracing the flag, he said, “I’m learning to embrace my Americanism. I’m an African American, but I’m an American.”
Sober truths, tender stories
Luckett said she is committed to pursuing questions surrounding American patriotism, exceptionalism and labor.
“Stephen offers viewers sobering truths and tender stories of Black life that break away from dominant narratives that continue to plague society in the United States of America,” she said.
Towns’ focus on labor connects well with The Westmoreland’s collection, Kraybill said, “but more importantly, his works reveal stories that have been largely left untold in American history and in American art.”
Kraybill said she first saw Towns’ work in 2018 at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center in Pittsburgh. From that moment, she said, “I was 100% confident that I wanted to show his work here.”
The artist’s first museum exhibition, “Stephen Towns: Rumination and a Reckoning,” took place in 2018 at The Baltimore Museum of Art. His work has shown nationally in solo and group exhibitions and is held in private collections nationally and abroad. Towns has been featured in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Luckett is a Pittsburgh-based art historian and curator whose mission is to elevate underrepresented artists, including women and people of color. She is founding executive director and chief curator of the experimental, contemporary art platform, ALMA|LEWIS.
For more information on “Stephen Towns: Declaration & Resistance” at The Westmoreland, call 724-837-1500 or visit thewestmoreland.org.
Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Shirley by email at smcmarlin@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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