Review April 2014
The Kinsey Collection, Gantt Center; Charlotte, NC

Next up was a rock from the infamous Gore′e Island off the coast of West Africa/Senegal which is home of the Door of No Return -- meaning it was the last time that the Slaves who exited it would ever return to their homeland. Tear drop! Also included in this gallery of lament were Slave shackles, a book of pre-Slavery Africa that included Loannis, Leonis, Africani, and Africae; as well as a ledger displaying Africans as property. In addition, information on one of my favorite poets, Ms. Phillis Wheatley, and a seven minute video on the Kinsey′s were included. We then ventured into the gallery east to the right and the wall outside included a quote about unknown Blacks and their contributions. Inside were stats on the 12-15 million enslaved Africans that were part of the Slave trade in Europe, America, and the Caribbean. Oddly, there were only about 500K sent to North America, and most of them were females, according to the exhibit. The 3/5^th′s Rule was also mentioned; it took 5 Black men to equal 3 white men. This next section may be a bit controversial with mainstream America who seems to think that President Lincoln was actually against Slavery. The fact of the matter is that he was indeed pro-Slavery and freed our ancestors for the purpose of helping the north win the Civil War; which they did. So where are our 40 acres and a mule? Smile!


Also included was information on the historic Dred Scott Supreme Court decision (1857) that established that all Blacks/Africans (Slaves and free) were never entitled to become citizens of the United States of America. This was not the last time those Supreme folks made a major historical blunder; remember Bush v. Gore (2000)? They also went over the period of Reconstruction (1865 − 1877) here in the United States, following the Civil War, which saw the emergence of socially unjust devises known as the Black Code and Jim Crow laws -- both designed to intimidate free Blacks from voting. Also included was the emergence of Black politicians elected to every level of government from local to federal-- during and after Reconstruction until the 1920′s; the founding of the N.A.A.C.P. (1909, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), the Greensboro (North Carolina) Sit In at F.W. Woolworth (02/01/1964), Dr. King′s rise to power during the Civil Rights Movement (1950′s − 1960′s), the Real Deal with the Black Panthers Party and how they provided free breakfast and lunch and other services to the poor; and the Eugenics (1933 − 1977, Sterilization of mainly Black women) Board. Here the exhibit established that Shirley Kinsey is the art collector and Bernard Kinsey collects the artifacts.



The third and final gallery -- on the left -- featured 19^th Century Black art to include the Harlem Renaissance (1919 − 1933), African women in art, lithograph, water color, mixed media; oil on canvas, acrylic on paper, ink on paper, etc… They also featured some of the art from the late Black/African-American painter (And former pro football player, actor, author) Ernest ″Ernie″ Eugene Barnes, Jr. (1938 − 2009) who was well known for his unique style of elongation and movement. He was born in nearby Durham, NC, and his paintings can be found on the 1976 Marvin Gaye album, the Good Times Sitcom (1974 − 1979), and even in the owner′s suite of Mr. Jerry Richardson at Bank of America Stadium; home of the Carolina Panthers pro football team. Banks and Richardson were briefly teammates for the then Baltimore Colts back in the late 1950′s. Our fabulous and educational tour ended at approximately 3:40 PM which equates to one hour and twenty-minutes from start to finish. They had a book that goes with the exhibit for sale in the gift shop.



All in all this was a great outing and experience. Kudos to the Kinsey′s for this wonderful and ″propaganda free″ exhibit of Black/African art and history, and to our guide Monique who did a great job in complementing this exhibit with her expertise and knowledge, and her ability to keep everyone (young and older) quite interested from start to finish. As a former Governor and actor would say, ″I′ll be back!″

The Gantt Center is located in Uptown/Downtown/Center City Charlotte at 551 South Tryon Street. Their web address is www.ganttcenter.org and phone number is 704-374-1565. Tell them that Trend Magazine Online^tm sent you!