Must See Exhibit: A Picture Gallery of the Soul

Article by Becky Fillinger

Herman Milligan, Jr. Photo, Susan SchaeferThis exhibit at the Katherine E. Nash Gallery features the work of over 100 Black American photography artists, with works ranging from the 19th to the 21st centuries. The exhibition is organized by independent curator Herman J. Milligan, Jr. and Howard Oransky, Director of the Katherine E. Nash Gallery. We talked to Herman Milligan about the importance of and influences for the show - and all the events open to the public. Plan your visit - the show runs  from September 13 - December 10, 2022.

Q:  I just learned that Frederick Douglass sat for photographic portraits 160 times - he was the most photographed American of the 19th century. Douglass did not sit to glorify himself. He understood that photography could do something different from a hand sketch or a lecture - it was an indelible visual record of exactly what the subject looked like at that time and as WBUR noted Douglass believed that “photography highlighted the essential humanity of its subjects.” Is his influence evident in the exhibition?   

A:  I would say that Douglass' influence in this exhibition can be seen and felt throughout. In the three speeches that he delivered, a common theme was the ability of photography to reveal an individual and historical record of humans, their traditions and surroundings that could be more readily available than before its invention. Paintings and drawings of individuals portraying their social mores and customs were more exclusively available to the elite. For enslaved and indentured individuals, the non-photographic artform of portraiture was confined to the houses, institutions, and establishments where they were allowed to work in or visit.

More importantly, photography allowed for individuals to record their own destinies so to speak, to share it, and to pass it on for generations to come. As the medium became more popularized and widely accessible, this allowed for a freer means of expression and communication that galvanized and sustained the abolitionist and other civil rights movements in his period and until the present. Photographers in this exhibition, A Picture Gallery of the Soul, employ the photographic medium as means to explore identity in its many forms; to reveal environmental, social, cultural, and socio-economic injustices that Black Americans and others are facing, as well as revealing the human conditions Black Americans and humans may experience. The photographers in this exhibition employ a diverse set of techniques (i.e., use of different camera models and technologies; differing compositional styles and varied subject matter) to reveal the Black American experience within the time period in which these images were taken. 

Q:  The US Civil Rights Movement was greatly aided by photography. We could not look away at images of the assault of peaceful protesters at lunch counters or state troopers assaulting Selma marchers. Why do we need the gut punch of a photograph to get moved by a story? Are these photographs art or history? Both?  

A:  I believe throughout human existence, humans have developed the ability to create figurative work in its many forms (i.e., cave drawings, figurative painting, photography, film, video, online media channels, etc.) to leave a historical clue as well as to communicate a current experience that challenges the viewer to become moved; motivated to engage; or not take action. In our modern society, the proliferation of diverse media channels amplifies the individual's or groups' ability to move or to not move someone or group by a story which one might interpret as having compelling photographic images. Individuals decide to engage or not to engage for various reasons. Photography as a medium, in my opinion, poses the question to the viewer as to how they should feel and if they need to do anything about it, based on the images and/or story being communicated.

I believe effective photographers do a great job at this. They produce powerful compelling images that tell a story, regardless of whether they will also write the story. Moreover, great photographers produce images that must stand on their own. If the image moves you to think and contemplate about the subject matter, in a way that compels you to think and act to do something about the subject matter of the image, then that person has done their job. Such photographs in my opinion will stand the test of time. Fine quality photographs, regardless of the reason why they were taken, will be memorable in the most positive manner over time. Who defines whether a photograph, for whatever reason why the picture was taken, or whether it is art or history, or both, is a question that I believe has meaning relative to the subject matter of the photograph as well as related to the photographer who took the picture. I hope that American society and the world will have progressed to a point where art historians, art critics, collectors, and photographers will honestly evaluate the quality of the work and honestly record the precarious journey of Black American photographers during this important period of our country's history. 

Q:  Telephones with cameras have moved us even closer to instantaneously recording the truth of a situation. Every citizen becomes a photojournalist. Are we all creating art? 

A:  Although the development of new technologies in the telephone industry has allowed photography to become a mass market phenomena, not every person can become a photojournalist or an artist just because they have a cell phone with a camera. These two fields still demand and require courses of study or the ability to acquire such skills through an educational route. Individuals who become proficient at art or photojournalism but did not get a degree in these disciplines (i.e., self-taught or through an apprentice, but not receiving a degree) are popularly identified as "Outsider Artists" or "Outsider Photojournalists." Whether what is being created by the so-called "Non-artist" or "Non-photojournalist" is "art" or "photojournalism" is left to the respective professions and society to decide if such work is "art" or "photojournalism."

Unfortunately, we have the tragic death of George Floyd, on May 25, 2020, in Minneapolis to illustrate this point. Darnella Frazier, who took the now famous video of Mr. Floyd, being slowly killed by Officer Derek Chauvin on that date, was not a trained photojournalist, but a very brave woman who made a difference. Her video galvanized a movement that spread worldwide, brought some justice to Floyd's family, and hopefully will bring meaningful and important change within the criminal justice systems within the United States and beyond. For her courage, she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Journalism in June 2021. "Outsiders" of both disciplines who continue to learn and practice their skills through workshops, courses, etc. over a long period of time will become professionally proficient in their respective fields and will eventually be defined as a "journalist" or "artist" in their respective fields.

Above, Salimah Ali's Dare (Portrait of Ugochi Egonu), Courtesy of the artist. Salimah is one of the artists part of A Picture Gallery of the Soul.

Above, Kwame Brathwaite Self Portrait at AJASS Studios, Courtesy of the artist and Philip Martin Gallery, LA. Kwame is one of the artists part of A Picture Gallery of the Soul.

Q:  Setting aside civil rights, what other aspects of black life in the United States does your exhibition touch upon? 

A:  The exhibition covers many aspects of Black American life across the three centuries. When visiting the exhibition, the viewer will be able to experience portraits of individuals in various settings and situations that parallel such situations that all Americans and human cultures globally experience. For example, there are portraits of individuals, young or older, in their home or professional or social setting that in a way communicates the common experiences that all cultures within our country experience. These images present people doing the things they love to do on an everyday basis or present individuals who are recognized for their achievements and the struggles they pursue and/or are experiencing at a certain point in time. Such presentations of the everyday experiences of these individuals underscores the commonality of behaviors and circumstances that are common across the United States and the world. There is also a historical experience of being Black in America that is presented over time in a manner that underscores and reveals these struggles that are presented in a provocative and effective way to encourage a serious dialogue with the viewer about these circumstances.

Q:  Please tell us about the companion exhibition of photographs made by local high school students. 

A:  We thought it was important to showcase the work of photography students attending the Gordon Parks High School in St. Paul which was founded in 1991. Their work will appear in the nearby Quarter Galley. Gordon Parks was a St. Paul native who emigrated to the city from Fort Scott, Kansas. He chose photography to communicate the human condition and to help improve it through his photographic, filmmaking, music, writing, and philanthropic careers. We thought it was only fitting to give these students to showcase their creative work as a parallel exhibition to ours.

Q:  Are there events around the exhibition that we may attend? 

A:  Yes. There are five events – please note that registration is required for each event: 

Virtual Keynote | Thursday, September 15 | 6:30 pm | Online
Presentation with Prof. Deborah Willis, New York University
Registration required: https://z.umn.edu/Prof_Deborah_Willis

Opening Program | Thursday, September 22 | 6:00 – 7:00 pm | InFlux Space, Regis Center for Art
Presentation with the exhibition curators and visiting scholar lecture
Mining the Archive of Black Life and Culture, Prof. Cheryl Finley, Cornell University
Registration required: https://z.umn.edu/RegisRSVP

Public Reception | Thursday, September 22 | 7:00 – 9:00 pm | Katherine E. Nash Gallery
Come celebrate with the curators and visiting guests
Registration required: https://z.umn.edu/RegisRSVP

Spoken Word Event | Wednesday, October 12 |12:15 pm|InFlux Space, Regis Center for Art
Program with Ty Chapman, Keno Evol, and Andrea Jenkins
Registration required: https://z.umn.edu/RegisRSVP

Writers Reading Event | Thursday, November 17 |12:15 pm|InFlux Space, Regis Center for Art
Program with Mary Easter, G.E. Patterson, and Davu Seru
Registration required: https://z.umn.edu/RegisRSVP 

Q:  Is there a catalogue for the show? 

A:  Yes! The catalogue, co-published with the University of California Press will be on sale at the University Bookstore starting in September. Lastly, myself and Howard have developed a Soundscape for the images contained within the catalogue. MP-3 Players will be distributed when you attend the show, along with a smaller catalogue linking the catalogue image with a particular song or songs. Several images may have more than one song.

Coreen Simpson, Self Portrait