Inspired by a first-of-its-kind, 1920s periodical for Black children, a new museum solo show examines complex histories of positive cultural representation of African Americans.
Southern-raised, New York-based printmaker Jennifer Mack-Watkins mounts her first museum solo show, comprising fourteen varied-size works on paper that thematically respond to the short-lived, W.E.B. Du Bois-edited The Brownies’ Book: A Monthly Magazine for the Children of the Sun. Additional influences include the legacy of African-American poet and oral historian Daisy Turner (who was born in 1883 Vermont to formerly enslaved parents, and whose life spanned 104 years) and MackWatkins’ own constant search—previously as a child, and now as a parent to young kids—for toys and books that offer positive Black representation.
