Read the full article in The Davidsonian.
This past year has taught the U.S. many lessons on empathy. From the pandemic, to problems of racial injustice and a polarizing election, using one’s voice to tell one’s own story — and oftentimes the stories of others — has led to a deeper sense of understanding and belonging between people. The Van Every/Smith Galleries’ current exhibition, True Likeness, showcases artists who utilize portraiture to capture the essence of identity. These artists challenge the genre through medium, subject and content; they utilize portraiture to reflect aspects of identity that they feel should be shared and to question who the subjects should be, what information can be displayed, and which aspects truly capture an individual’s identity.
The exhibition came to fruition in part due to the “Stories Yet To Be Told: Race, Racism, and Accountability” (SYTBT) initiative on campus. President Carol Quillen began the initiative in August 2020 in order to transform spaces around campus to create dialogue and awareness on race and racial issues. This multidisciplinary initiative spurred many different projects, research and courses on campus. As an SYTBT intern, I work closely with the gallery (under Lia Newman and Elizabeth Harry’s direction) to disclose how art has and will continue to play a role at Davidson College. Maya Tetali ‘21, another student intern under SYTBT, and I were given the opportunity to facilitate Artistic Introspective, a workshop run by visual artist Endia Beal, who is featured in the gallery’s current exhibition.
On February 16th, 2021, Beal delivered a lecture where she discussed her work, which incorporates photography, videography and performance, to create engaging pieces often centered on social activism in the workspace. Displayed in the gallery, there is a recording of her project, Mock Interview, which repeatedly plays on a television screen for visitors to watch. The viewer feels drawn into the screen, and after putting on the provided and disposable earbuds (safety first!), observers realize it’s an interview. As the video flicks through clips of white men at a table, you hear Beal’s voice asking a series of absurd and prejudiced questions that she gathered from reviewing the real interview experiences of Black women. In the piece, Beal interviewed white men who had volunteered for the project but were not expecting these jarring, but all-too-common, inappropriate questions. She poses questions like, “Are you sure you don’t have kids?” and “Could I get that hair at a store?” to the visibly uncomfortable men. The participants later expressed their shock at some of the questions and how the interview made them feel alienated. From the participants to the viewers, this piece encapsulates the goal of Beal’s art: to create empathy and understanding in people, which can lead to them making more conscious choices.
During her lecture, Beal discussed another series titled Can I Touch It?. Beal started this project in response to hearing that two of her coworkers were discussing their desire to touch her hair. With hair being a large part of her identity, she felt uncomfortable knowing that some of her colleagues had this desire. She decided to transform her discomfort into a learning opportunity. Beal invited several of her coworkers to touch her hair and then insisted that they do it with increasing amounts of force. She then asked the participants, “How did you like it,” and while some found the novel experience exciting, many felt the action was invasive. Similar to many of her pieces, Beal used her work to make people realize that their actions and words may be inappropriate. When faced with this realization, participants and viewers were able to reflect on their own impact. Although these lessons centered around the corporate environment, topics like vulnerability, empathy, and communication can be applied in many different settings.
Those who attended the lecture had the opportunity to participate in a two-hour diversity, equity and inclusion workshop titled Artistic Introspective. Beal emphasized how interaction and vulnerability played an important role in the success of the workshop. Using her series Am I What You’re Looking For, which focused on the experiences of Black women in the corporate world, Beal curated a slideshow that would be the basis of the workshop. Each slide featured a woman’s portrait and was accompanied by a brief explanation of their experience in the workplace and two discussion questions. These questions centered around biases, assimilation, alienation, and prejudice. Using breakout rooms, small groups led by a facilitator were given roughly an hour to go through slides. Due to extensive conversations, many groups were only able to get through three of the ten slides available (something Beal says is common). At the conclusion of each slide, the group was instructed to give one piece of advice to the subject of the slide. Beal closed out the workshop by going through the slides with all the groups, and having them share the advice that they came up with.
While the success of the workshop was aided by participants’ openness, Endia Beal formatted the workshop in a way that effectively used photography as a tool to create dialogue. She understands that when people approach art, their interpretation hinges on their past experiences, and she juxtaposes art and questions to draw out these experiences. Beal’s workshop was a safe space for individuals with different backgrounds to share how they relate to a piece. The questions that were posed will help us become more cognizant of how we conduct ourselves in spaces for present and future times. Although this was a single workshop, the opportunity and necessity to have these conversations are ever present. In order to begin shifting Davidson towards an environment of equity and inclusivity, we need to be aware of our faults (intentional and unintentional). Conversations like those that occurred during the workshop are difficult; they draw up old wounds and exasperate already present tensions, but being able to recognize the presence of biases and prejudices is necessary to creating change on campus. Projects like Davidson College Microaggressions and the Stories Yet to Be Told initiatives are working hard to continue creating these healthy and productive dialogues, but they will only be as active as their participants.
-Marquia Humphries ’22