Omar Victor Diop (born 1980), Jean-Baptiste Belley, detail, 2014, inkjet pigment print on Hahnemuhle paper, edition of 8 + 2 AP. ©Omar Victor Diop, Courtesy of Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

Posing Beauty in African American Culture

October 5, 2024–January 12, 2025 | Fifth Third Gallery and Taft Historic House

Posing Beauty in African American Culture traces the relationship between African American beauty and visual culture from the 1890s to the present through documentary, commercial, and fine art photography. Documentary photographs and portraits of portraits of Black Americans—some famous, some just ordinary citizens—present the public face of African American beauty, while commercial photographs demonstrate how fashion and advertising have constructed beauty standards. Finally, contemporary photographers—some of whom use themselves as a subject—encourage consideration of how images of beauty impact mass culture and individuals.

Posing Beauty includes more than 100 works by photographers including Charles “Teenie” Harris, Leonard Freed, Anthony Barboza, Carrie Mae Weems, Hank Willis Thomas, Sheila Pree Bright, Renee Cox, Mickalene Thomas, and others. Organized by Curatorial Assistance Traveling Exhibitions and curated by Deborah Willis, PhD, one of the nation’s leading historians of African American photography and culture, the exhibition will challenge existing notions of beauty while encouraging consideration of race, class, and gender within art and popular culture.

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Terri Kern (American, born 1964), Seamstress, wheel thrown, hand painted with underglaze, finished with clear glaze, 2 1/2 x 3 in. diam. Photo by Michael Svach.

Resilience: New Ceramic Works by Terri Kern

October 12, 2024–February 16, 2025 | Sinton Gallery and Taft Historic House

What does nature teach us about the ability to embrace, resist, or recover from life’s challenges? Local ceramic artist Terri Kern explores the theme of resilience in her latest creations. Inspired by the natural world, her symbolic works of art tell stories of love, loss, triumph, and hardship: tiny portraits dangle from the mouths of dragons; birds cautiously perch upon spools of thread; cages enclose empty swings. For the pieces in this exhibition, Kern also sought inspiration from a variety of objects in the Taft Museum of Art’s collection, including Chinese porcelains, Italian maiolica, and European portrait miniatures.   

Using wheel throwing and hand building techniques, Kern decorates her intimate narrative works, made from white earthenware, with layers of colors, creating vibrant glazed surfaces. Her award-winning ceramics have been featured in numerous publications and are held in public and private collections throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. Kern’s works have also been exhibited internationally, including shows in China, Japan, and Germany. 

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