Black History Month is winding down, and at the Calaboose African American History Museum many intensive educational and cultural events have taken place and been well-attended and enjoyed. Organized and assisted by board members, they brought in both informative expertise and leadership skills to facilitate active participation and meaningful engagement with attendees.
The expanded space at the Cephas House, across from the Calaboose, has been well utilized for diverse gatherings each Saturday. The first Saturday set the tone of the month with “The State of Black San Marcos: A Dialogue”; the second Saturday was a full-day practical workshop “Peace in Action: Nonviolence as a Tool For Change” facilitated by Sarah Davenport, of Provisions for Peace.
The third Saturday morning celebrated the “Annual National African American Read In,” a collaboration with the San Marcos Public Library and De Zavala teacher and Calaboose board member Diana Garcia. The morning began by honoring middle school and high school students who read their winning essays about their favorite African American authors.
In the Calaboose rotating exhibit space, a dynamic collection of cultural artifacts, posters, relevant literature and colorful clothing on the theme of Afrofuturism had been installed by Texas State Assistant Professor Christian Hines.
After visiting the exhibit on Saturday, visitors returned to the Cephas House where Torens Johnson, National Aileycamp Deputy Director and Assistant Dance Professor at Texas State, shared a brilliantly choreographed modern dance performance.
Following was a multi faceted journey through the conceptual evolution of Afrofuturism and its influences on popular culture and emergence of powerful Black characters in comic books and films- most notably “Black Panther.”
Inspired by the Afrofuturism exhibit, a complementary exhibit of work by four professional Black artists was installed in the Cephas House gallery. Its title, “Seeing the Unseen, “ has many references and possible interpretations.
Robert (Bob) Jones , a 1978 graduate of Texas State, is a long time resident of San Marcos with years of working as curator in Austin museums and graphic design work for the city. Since retiring he has worked on multiple commissioned projects, perhaps most recognized here by his “Diversity Mural” at the corner of LBJ and MLK. His small format paintings are part of a series he calls “Walking in My Shoes”.
Terrence Moline, who grew up in New Orleans, came to Austin as a Hurricane Katrina refugee. The black-and-white photographs he calls “Glimpses” are but a few of his spontaneous portraits through his lens of love for the deep culture and music of his home city.
Dave McClinton, a 1991 graduate of Texas State with a degree and day job in graphic design, has added fine art to his resume fairly recently. His large portraits are created as digital collages. He collects textures and images and layers them into final images that are luminous, mysterious and compelling. They are the eyes of the ‘Seeing’ in this exhibit.
Yvonne Palkowitsh is a multi-talented creative explorer and ultra positive life coach. Her artwork merges carefully planned photographs with digital composite techniques into soulful, imaginative tales. Her work is deeply inspired by the resilience of women, employing dark, richly colored scenes to convey both strength and vulnerability.
As we approach the last weekend of Black History Month, we invite you to Saturday’s “New Book Conversation: Poverty Rebels: Black and Brown Protest in Post-Civil Rights America” by Dr. Casey Nichols, History Professor at Texas State from 12:30 - 2 p.m.
On Sunday, March 1, the Cephas House hosts an artists reception from 3:00-5:00 pm. Light refreshments will be provided Both the “Afrofuturism” and “Seeing the Unseen” artwork will be on exhibit through Friday, April 24. For more information about visiting the Cephas House outside of Calaboose regular hours, please contact Info@calaboosemuseum.
