SUNY Empire State College Celebrates Black History Month with Exhibit

February 22, 2012 Brooklyn Eagle Staff
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BROOKLYN — In celebration of Black History Month, SUNY Empire State College’s Metropolitan Center will host “Breaking Boundaries,” an exhibition by current students and alumni.

The opening reception is Thursday, Feb. 23, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Livingston Gallery, 177 Livingston St.  

Raul Manzano, college faculty mentor, is the curator of the exhibition. The exhibition will be on display through March 30, Monday through Thursday, from noon to 5 p.m. by appointment.

Empire State College President Alan R. Davis said, “I am very pleased to support this celebration of Black History Month at the Metropolitan Center. This event speaks of our commitment as an institution to honor, respect and nurture diversity and cultural heritage. More importantly, this exhibition encapsulates the energy and excitement of learning at the college.”

In a series of documentary photographs of recently discovered African burial grounds, Leslie Arlette Boyce unveils a revealing testimony to common cruelty in Colonial America. Vanessa Moore’s collage of hip hop ambassador Tupac Shakur highlights the brief life of this iconic symbol of a generation. Sheryl Robin David’s crochets are a blend of craft and fine arts; her hand-made delicate designs give new meanings to this medium. With her poem, “Broken Boundaries,” written for this exhibition, April Simmons shares a story of the resilience and passion that can manifest from a past of boundaries and restrictions. Cordell Price’s print, “My American Flag,” emphasizes the contradiction of freedom and the civil rights struggle to show the progress African Americans have made since times of slavery, even though inequality continues to persevere.

“‘Breaking Boundaries’ is the fusion of Empire State College’s artistic talents in celebration of Black History month. The artists in their own visual expression portray personal or collective experiences to share the spirit of Black America. Breaking Boundaries is freedom, and freedom is a desirable human condition that each person is entitled to,” says Manzano.

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