Contact:
Dan Carpenter
(325) 673-4587
Marketing@thegracemuseum.org

Black movie posters exhibit opens at The Grace Museum

Abilene, TX (September 4, 2008) - A new exhibit at The Grace Museum shines the spotlight on movies and the influence of African-American cinema.

Imaging Blackness, 1915–2002: Film Posters from the Indiana University Black Film Center/Archive includes 43 striking posters from almost a century of independent black cinema. Collectively, these film posters provide a captivating exploration of the development of African-American cinema as it forged a role for black entertainers that countered - or reinforced - prevailing racial stereotypes.

Imaging Blackness features posters that highlight this tradition, beginning with Richard Norman’s films of the early 1900s. Over the next two decades, productions featuring alternative images of black life were more common, and black actors began to gain more “star power.” The cinematic focus shifted dramatically during the 1970s with the creation of “blaxploitation” films such as Superfly (1972). More recent decades gave rise to powerful movies such as The Color Purple (1985) that resonate with universal themes.  Apart from the films they represent, the posters themselves are a study in the development of promotional graphic design. 

Imaging Blackness is curated by Audrey T. McCluskey, Ph.D., Associate Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, and former director of the Black Film Center and Archive at the University.

Imaging Blackness is currently on display in Galleries B and C on The Grace’s second floor. The exhibit is generously sponsored by United Supermarkets, L.L.C., and an anonymous donor.

The Grace Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Thursday. Admission is free Thursday evening after 5 p.m.

For more information, call 325-673-4587.

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The Grace Museum's exhibitions and educational programs are supported in part by grants from the Texas Commission on the Arts, the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council, the City of Abilene, Taylor County, and the Downtown Revitalization Program of the Tax Increment Finance District. The Grace Museum is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built in 1909, The Hotel Grace served as a rest stop for railway travelers. The mission-style building was renovated and re-opened in 1992 as The Grace Cultural Center. The Grace Museum , a non-profit organization, now serves as a home to a Children's Museum, History Museum , and Art Museum. At 55,000 sq. ft., The Grace Museum is the 10th largest general museum in Texas . The Grace Museum is the cornerstone of cultural arts and education in West Texas .