The Harlem Fine Arts Show (HFAS) recently released its 2017 Harlem Fine Arts Show Magazine – Chicago Edition. Patricia Andrews-Keenan, president of the Tallulah Group, served as editor-in-chief for the publication focused on the city’s African American arts and culture scene.
The issue charts many of Chicago’s art milestones going back to the barrier-breaking artists of the 30s and 40’s who spent time in Chicago including Eldzier Cortor, Elizabeth Catlett, Charles White, Gordon Parks, Richard Hunt and William Walker. It chronicles the founding of key institutions associated with Dr. Margaret Burroughs, including the South Side Community Arts Center, the DuSable Museum, and the Lake Meadows Art Fair. And it heralds the rise of today’s international art celebrities like Theaster Gates, Kerry James Marshall and Nick Cave and the burgeoning art scene in the city today.
This year’s HFAS magazine, the second about the Chicago arts scene, comes as the City celebrates “The Year of Public Art,” one of the milestones being the 50th Anniversary of the “Wall of Respect.” The Wall of Respect, conceived by William Walker, was the first outdoor mural done for the community and celebrated the right of people to use art publicly to portray themselves and to assert pride in their heritage.
During this year’s HFAS – November 16 – 19th at Malcolm X College, one of the lectures will be with Wall of Respect artist, Eugene ‘Edo’ Wade, who also painted the iconic doors at the original Malcolm X College. His daughter, Martha, and Malcolm X arts instructor Michelle Perkins will also participate.
The volume also recognizes the Black gallery owners, curators, and collectors who continue to present thought provoking exhibits that make us examine today’s social and political realities. Earlier this year NYCH Gallery presented “Farewell 44,” an artistic tribute to President Barack H. Obama, and attorney Stanley Stallworth curated the “American Justice: She Ain’t Blind,” examining the racial inequities of the criminal justice system. Both exhibits received extensive media coverage.
“This Magazine features amazing stories about the African American art scene here in Chicago, from the Wall of Respect, to the DuSable Museum, to the South Side Community Art Center, as well as stories about people shaping the arts in the city like Diane Dinkins Carr, Maséqua Myers and Helen West, written by Deborah Crable; to national figures like Congressman Danny Davis, Woodrow Nash, Austen Brantley and Kevin Williams,” said Andrews-Keenan. It is an honor to bring these stories to readers.”
