“Art with vision, that reflects a people’s desire and aspirations, is an art that is guided by principle. It transcends borders, and thus becomes universal in its many creative expressions in support of the people’s movement for liberation against all forms of oppression and injustice.”
Art Guided by Principle, Emory Douglas Copyright Wellington Media Collective and Emory Douglas 2013
All events are free and open to the public.
Sheldon ExhibitionEmory Douglas - Revolutionary Artist
Sept. 11 - Jan. 3, 2016
Love Library ExhibitionsBilly X Jennings
Justin Kemerling
Suzun Lucia Lamaina
August. 16 - Oct. 30
Screen Printing Workshop
Social Justice Screen Printing Workshop
Sept. 15, 2015, 1-4 p.m.
Artist
Lecture
Emory Douglas - Revolutionary Artist
Sept. 15, 2015 5:30 p.m.
Public
Reception
Billy X Jennings
Justin Kemerling
Suzun Lucia Lamaina
Sept. 16, 4-5 p.m.
Panel
Discussion
Designing for Justice - The Role of Visual Communications
Sept. 16, 5:30 p.m.
About the Design + Social Justice Symposium
The events and exhibitions of the symposium will highlight the visual communications, stories and portraits of revolutionary social movements and will examine how graphic design is a tool for organizing. The graphic artifacts that will be exhibited represent the role of art as a revolutionary force and how art and design can communicate about a need for social change. The symposium will examine the role of graphic design in creating messages that promote civil and human rights, preservation of the environment, and advocacy of equal opportunity.
facebook.com/designsocialjustice
Sponsored by UNL’s Hixson-Lied Fine and Performing Arts Visiting Artist Program, Institute for Ethnic Studies, Love Library, and the Faculty Senate Convocations Committee. Special thank you to Sheldon Museum of Art, Humanities Nebraska and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment for their generous support.
Emory DouglasThe Struggle Continues
Revolutionary Art of the Black Panther Party
Sheldon Museum of Art
September 11 - January 03, 2016
The featured guest speaker and visiting artist is Emory Douglas, former Minister of Culture and graphic artist of the Black Panther Party. His work will be exhibited at the Sheldon Museum of Art from mid-September through early January. Emory Douglas will be an artist in residence in the Department of Art and Art History, September 15–16, 2015.
Emory Douglas’s imagery is accessible and powerful; it inspires people to action. He is a revolutionary artist and agent of social change. The struggle for justice continues, and Emory’s art and what the Party fought for are as pertinent as ever.
The Black Panther Party was a revolutionary organization promoting social justice that was active from 1966 until 1980. Community social programs, such as free breakfast for school children, free health and dental clinics, sickle-cell testing, and voter registration assistance were primary activities of the Party. In addition, they formed alliances with other oppressed groups in the struggle for equality and social justice.
Emory Douglas will present a free public lecture on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 5:30 p.m. at the Sheldon.
(left) (left) We Shall Survive Without a Doubt, (middle) Afro-American solidarity with the oppressed People of the world, (right) Our people’s army should be built up...,by Emory Douglas Back covers of The Black Panther: Black Community News Service, offset lithographs, © 2015 Emory Douglas / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Photos courtesy of Emory Douglas / Art Resource, NYExhibitionSeptember 11 – January 03, 2016
Sheldon Museum of Art
Public Lecture5:30 p.m., September 15
Sheldon Museum Auditorium
Panel Discussion5:30 p.m., September 16
Love Library Auditorium
Suzun Lucia Lamaina Revolutionary Grain
A collection of contemporary portraits
and stories of former members
of the Black Panther Party
Suzun Lucia Lamaina, BFA, MA is an independent scholar, social documentary photographer, teacher and photographic historian. Her work focuses on portraiture that reveals the interconnectedness of her subject’s essence and the environments in which they live. A former colleague and student of Farm Security Administration photographer, John Collier, Jr., Suzun is acutely aware of the visual language of photography and the role it plays in providing a discourse about visual communications.
Her forthcoming book, “Revolutionary Grain: Celebrating the Spirit of the Black Panther Party in Portraits and Stories,” will be published in conjunction with the 50th Anniversary of the Black Panther Party in October, 2016.
Photographs of Emory Douglas, Kathleen Cleaver and Billy X Jennings by Suzun Lucia LamainaExhibitionAugust 16 – October 30, 2015
Love Library, 2nd Floor.
Public Reception4:00 – 5:30 p.m., September 16
Love Library, 2nd Floor.
Panel Discussion5:30 p.m., September 16
Love Library Auditorium
Billy X JenningsRADICAL UNDERGROUND NEWSPAPERS
Alternative newspapers from the underground counterculture of the 60’s and 70’s from the collection of Billy X Jennings
Black Panther Party historian and archivist Billy X Jennings will present an exhibition of radical underground newspapers from the 1960s and 1970s, which will be on display at Love Library. The historically significant newspapers represent a voice that was not in the mainstream media. The publications created an ethos around the struggle for equality, civic engagement and justice. Often authored, designed and published by university students, these publications offer insight into the underground press and its vast diversity of visual languages that were both accessible and powerful while inspiring people to action. Selections of these graphic design artifacts include, The Berkeley Barb, The East Village Other, Basta Ya, Berkeley Tribe, San Francisco Oracle, the Chicago Seed and many others.
To visit the Black Panther Party archives go to
itsabouttimebpp.com
Newspapers from the archive of Billy X JenningsExhibitionAugust 16 – October 30, 2015
Love Library, 2nd Floor.
Public Reception4:00 – 5:30 p.m., September 16
Love Library, 2nd Floor.
Panel Discussion5:30 p.m., September 16
Love Library Auditorium
Justin Kemerling Cause Poster
A Collection of graphic design activism for a variety of exhibitions, organizations and causes.
Justin Kemerling is an independent designer, activist, and collaborator living in Omaha, Nebraska focused on making it beautiful, moving people to action, and getting good things done. He works primarily with community organizations, political campaigns, and changemaking startups in need of branding, graphic design, web design, and art direction. His self-initiated projects and collaborations explore ways to move forward important causes and ideas with design, art, and other forms of creative expression.
Posters by Justin KemerlingExhibitionAugust 16 – October 30, 2015
Love Library, 2nd Floor.
Public Reception4:00 – 5:30 p.m.,September 16
Love Library, 2nd Floor.
Panel Discussion5:30 p.m., September 16
Love Library Auditorium
Suzun Lucia Lamaina , Emory Douglas, Billy X Jennings, and Justin Kemerling (from left to right).Design + Social Justice
Panel Discussion5:30 p.m., September 16 Love Library Auditorium
Panelists include Emory Douglas, Billy X Jennings, Suzun Lucia Lamaina, and Justin Kemerling.
"What is the relationship between design and social change? How does graphic design – and visual culture, more broadly – communicate a message; create community; educate the people; uplift and empower; foster a sense of identity and pride; sway opinion; change hearts and minds; affect institutions of power; and, ultimately, play a role in creating meaningful and substantive social change? In short, what role(s) does (or can) design and the visual arts play in creating “a revolutionary culture” and “radical change”?
Conversely, what are the limits on or challenges to graphic design and visual culture as a vehicle for social change, particularly in a context of global mass-media; ubiquitous technology; hyper-commodification; post-industrial neo-liberalism; extreme inequality; and corporate dominance?
The panel features Emory Douglas, legendary artist, designer and “Minister of Culture” for the original Black Panther Party; Billy X, the digital archivist and curator at the online Black Panther Party archive, “It’s About Time”; photographer, Suzan Lucia Lamaina, who has created and curated a new collection of biographical portraits of Black Panther Party members; and Omaha’s own, Justin Kemerling, whose social justice-oriented graphic design work appears regularly across Nebraska and nationally.
The discussion will be moderated by Dr. Patrick D. Jones, Associate Professor, Department of History and Institute for Ethnic Studies, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Jones researches, writes and teaches about the civil rights and Black Power era.
This event is free and open to the public.
Involvement in the Design + Social Justice Symposium
If you are interested in the symposium or involving your students in any of these events, please contact:
Stacy Asher (stacyasher@unl.edu) or
Aaron Sutherlen (asutherlen2@unl.edu)
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
120 Richards Hall / Lincoln, NE 68588–0144