Fridays, February 13 – March 13, 2 – 4pm
Installation view of Isaac Julien’s Once Again . . . (Statues Never Die) at the Barnes, 2022. Image courtesy of Isaac Julien and Victoria Miro, London / Venice. Photo by Henrik Kam
$220; members $198
(4 classes; no class Feb. 27)
About the Class
In 2022, the Barnes commissioned Once Again . . . (Statues Never Die) from artist and filmmaker Isaac Julien. An immersive installation, this multimedia work explored the relationship between Albert C. Barnes, our founder, and Alain Locke, often called the father of the Harlem Renaissance.
Using the record of this installation as a point of departure, this course delves into the even broader circle of Philadelphia artists, writers, and institutions central to the unfolding of the Harlem Renaissance as a movement. We will examine paintings and photographs as well as literature published in journals like Black Opals, and use archival materials from local institutions and references to city landmarks to provide historical context. Together, we will uncover the little studied history of the Harlem Renaissance in Philadelphia and its enduring legacy for the city 100 years later.
The class is online-only. More about online classes.
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Barnes classes will:
- Sharpen your observational and critical thinking skills.
- Improve your ability to communicate about art.
- Deepen your appreciation for cultures and histories outside your own.
Installation view of Isaac Julien’s Once Again . . . (Statues Never Die) at the Barnes, 2022. Image courtesy of Isaac Julien and Victoria Miro, London / Venice. Photo by Henrik Kam
Instructors
Alison Boyd
Boyd is director of research and interpretation at the Barnes. She studies the intersection of multiple modernisms in American and European art in the first half of the 20th century, with a focus on the arts of the African diaspora and the politics of museum display. Boyd contributed to the 2023 publication The Barnes Then and Now: Dialogues on Education, Installation, and Social Justice.
Zita C. Nunes
Nunes is an associate professor of English at University of Pennsylvania and teaches comparative African American and African diaspora literature, literatures and arts of the Americas, and literary theory. She is the author of Cannibal Democracy: Race and Representation in the Literature of the Americas and is completing a new book titled The Many Selves of James Bertram Clarke: A Racial Chameleon Revises the World. She has a PhD in comparative literature from UC Berkeley.
What Our Students Say
“The instructor is a gifted individual who is able to [engage] with all different kinds of learners and motivate us to want to learn more, see more, and experience more. I would highly recommend any course by this instructor.” —Collection Concentration: Medieval Modern with Kaelin Jewell
“Martha Lucy knows how to balance her lecture with fact, excellent painting selections, and inclusion of the students.” —The Art and Life of Toulouse-Lautrec with Martha Lucy
“The best class to understand the elements of art. The instructor’s expertise and warmth, along with the excellent discussions with my classmates, made it a truly wonderful experience.” —The Elements of Art with William Perthes
“This class offered rich insight into Picasso and his contemporaries—the gallery scene, turn-of-the-century politics, Catalan culture, along with Picasso’s approach to composition and contemporary European culture. It was so informative.” —Picasso in Focus: New Discoveries at the Barnes with Christine Romano and Naina Saligram
“Caterina loves the material she presents and infuses all her classes—of which I have taken many—with that infectious enthusiasm.” —Rendez-vous au Café: Café Culture in 19th-Century Art with Caterina Pierre
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