Online Sources: Baltimore and the Black Arts Movement

Cover art from a 1980 issue of Chicory magazine

From 1966 until 1983, Enoch Pratt Free Library published Chicory, a literary magazine by Baltimore residents. According to historian Mary Rizzo, Chicory began as a federally funded Great Society program run by Evelyn Levy and Thelma Bell. It sought to give a voice to residents in Baltimore’s poorest neighborhoods and to develop black aesthetics in the arts locally.

Want to know more about this long-overlooked Baltimore arts magazine? View digital copies of all 126 issues in the statewide digital collection database, Digital Maryland: http://collections.digitalmaryland.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/mdcy

Cultural Arts Program Exhibit Opens 3/7

By Guest Blogger, Angela Rodgers-Koukoui

I’m very pleased to announce the opening of the Cultural Arts Program photo exhibit next Monday, 2/15  3/7, from noon to 2 pm. The exhibit, which is a collaboration between Langsdale Library Special Collections and the Division of Legal, Ethical and Historical Studies, will be located in room 317 of the H. Mebane Turner Learning Commons. The exhibit will feature a timeline with photographs, videos, and artifacts from the Cultural Arts Program, which began in Baltimore City in 1968 as part of the Model Cities Agency and continued through 1993 in the Urban Services Agency.

As the curator and designer of the exhibit, I would like to thank Langsdale Library for all of its assistance, as well as LEHS associate professor Dr. Nicole Hudgins for including this exhibit in the opening of the Ethics in the Arts Week at UB.

The Cultural Arts Program was one of the most successful art programs ever created in the history of Baltimore City. I say this not only as an alumna of the program, but also as a current art instructor and researcher who is eager to understand why high-quality youth arts education has been limited to so few in recent years. My quality of life was improved significantly by participating in the Cultural Arts Program as a child. I grew up in one of the poorest areas of Baltimore City. People who do not understand this kind of environment are unaware of the horrible impact of living in a sea of hopeless and what it can do to a child’s development. I was a walking statistic, born to fail; it was through the Cultural Arts Program that I was able to gain a sense of value of both my self-worth and my community. These values have been instilled in me and other CAP alumni, which is why so many of us are now teachers and community leaders running youth organizations throughout the country.

A lot of historic milestones occurred during the quarter-century run of the Cultural Arts Program. A few of these include the desegregation of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the celebration of the first African American Heritage Festival (AFRAM), and the creation of the first Urban Ballet Company. Barriers were broken, lives were saved from the streets, and the community was thriving in the field of the arts. I hope this exhibit will educate and enlighten others to understand the importance of quality art education for every child, especially in under-served areas of the city.

Lastly, I would like to thank the Langsdale Library Special Collections department. When I came to UB as a community researcher and discovered that Special Collections had my history in their archives, I had no prior knowledge of archivists or the role they play. Archivists Aiden Faust and Ben Blake have no idea that their commitment to preserving Baltimore's history is what encouraged me to enroll here at UB. Now I'm not only a student, but also a student assistant in Special Collections. This has been a humbling experience, and I'm truly amazed by the outpouring of support I've had while attending UB.

I hope everyone is able to join us for the opening reception of the Cultural Arts exhibit next week March 7th!

Documenting Community Arts in Baltimore

Screen capture from the exhibit, normaneross.wordpress.com

For the past two years, the library’s Special Collections department has worked with members of the community to recognize and preserve the legacy of community arts in Baltimore, with particular focus on the contributions of African Americans to the arts.

Last year, we hosted a pre-Artscape event and worked with researchers who conducted oral history interviews in the library. This year, we received a UB grant to digitize 16 mm films from the Cultural Arts Program and worked with a UB undergraduate student to create an exhibit highlighting a community arts leader.

Film Project

When 19 reels of motion picture film returned to the library after digitization, we were thrilled to discover more than 40 individual movies! The collection documents not only poetry, dance, and visual arts from the Cultural Arts Program, but also a wide range of human services and programs from CAP’s parent organization, the Baltimore Urban Services Agency.

Much of the digitized film was created by Baltimore City youth, under the director of producer Rachel Wohl, for Baltimore’s public access television channel, WBFF. Archivists in Special Collections had the opportunity to meet Ms. Wohl and get additional historical details about the films, which can be viewed and downloaded in their entirety here, on the library’s Internet Archive site.

Intern Exhibit

Special Collections was also lucky to have the opportunity to work with UB Integrated Arts intern, Hannah Smith, on an exhibit to honor the legacy of Norman Ross. Mr. Ross devoted his life to Baltimore’s community arts, as a musician and founder of the Cultural Arts Program, the Eubie Blake Museum, and AFRAM, the city’s African-American festival.

In addition to the materials Hannah created for the display case in the Special Collections Research Room on the 4th floor of the library, she also put together a digital exhibit. The exhibit website brings together her biographical research into Mr. Ross’ life, as well as highlights from over 10,000 archival photographic negatives she carefully examined!

As an archivist, I appreciate how working with the recent past affords opportunities to make connections to the present day. Our collaborative efforts to recognize the history of Baltimore’s community arts have connected Special Collections to many talented and committed individuals, and each one of them deserves recognition. Thank you, Norman Ross, Angela Koukoui, Breck Chapman, Pete O’Neal, Rachel Wohl, Janikka Simms, Hannah Smith, and Skip Elsheimer!