University of Kentucky Memorial Hall mural: Difference between revisions

From Censorpedia

No edit summary
No edit summary
Line 10: Line 10:
|location=Lexington, Kentucky, United States of America
|location=Lexington, Kentucky, United States of America
|description_of_content=Ann Rice O'Hanlon was a 20th-century American visual artist who painted murals. An alumna of the University of Kentucky, O'Hanlon painted a wall-length mural (fresco) inside the university's Memorial Hall in 1934 as part of the Treasury Relief Art Project, with funding from the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The 11 x 38 foot fresco depicts the history of Kentucky through a series of vignettes, including explorers on the frontier, horse racing and scenes of downtown Lexington, the construction of log cabins, fishing off a bridge, passengers riding in a train, and horse training. It includes depictions of African-Americans picking tobacco in the fields, white people dancing to music played by black musicians, and a Native American peering from the woods at a white woman gathering water from a stream.
|description_of_content=Ann Rice O'Hanlon was a 20th-century American visual artist who painted murals. An alumna of the University of Kentucky, O'Hanlon painted a wall-length mural (fresco) inside the university's Memorial Hall in 1934 as part of the Treasury Relief Art Project, with funding from the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The 11 x 38 foot fresco depicts the history of Kentucky through a series of vignettes, including explorers on the frontier, horse racing and scenes of downtown Lexington, the construction of log cabins, fishing off a bridge, passengers riding in a train, and horse training. It includes depictions of African-Americans picking tobacco in the fields, white people dancing to music played by black musicians, and a Native American peering from the woods at a white woman gathering water from a stream.
|description_of_incident=After students of color at the University of Kentucky objected to the mural, the administration draped the work in white fabric. In a November 23 statement issued two weeks after a meeting with two dozen African-American students, University President Eli Capilouto related this comment:  
|description_of_incident=Students of color at the University of Kentucky objected to the mural. In a November 23 statement issued two weeks after a meeting with two dozen African-American students, University President Eli Capilouto related this comment:  


"One African American student recently told me that each time he walks into class at Memorial Hall he looks at the black men and women toiling in tobacco fields and receives the terrible reminder that his ancestors were enslaved, subjugated by his fellow humans. Worse still, the mural provides a sanitized image of that history."
"One African American student recently told me that each time he walks into class at Memorial Hall he looks at the black men and women toiling in tobacco fields and receives the terrible reminder that his ancestors were enslaved, subjugated by his fellow humans. Worse still, the mural provides a sanitized image of that history."


On November 25, 2015, the administration covered the entire fresco in white sheets. Capiluoto referred to the shrouding as an interim action, as a "long-term answer will take some time." Capilouto also created a task force made up of faculty, staff and students.
On November 25, 2015, the administration covered the entire fresco in white fabric. Capiluoto referred to the shrouding as an interim action, as a "long-term answer will take some time." Capilouto also created a task force made up of faculty, staff and students.
|description_of_result=The American poet, novelist, activist and farmer Wendell Berry wrote an op-ed in the Lexington Herald-Leader denouncing the University of Kentucky’s decision. Excerpts:
|description_of_result=The American poet, novelist, activist and farmer Wendell Berry wrote an op-ed in the Lexington Herald-Leader denouncing the University of Kentucky’s decision:


"I don’t believe Ann Rice O’Hanlon would willingly have painted 'a painful and degrading personification of a false, romanticized rendering of our shared history.' I don’t think she did. I don’t think, to quote President Eli Capilouto again, that 'the mural provides a sanitized image of that history' or that her 'artistic talent actually painted over the stark reality' of slavery."
"The president further objects to the fresco on the grounds that it reminds 'one black student... that his ancestors were slaves.' That statement has at least two arresting implications: (1) that black students should not ever be reminded that their ancestors were slaves, and (2) that white students should not ever be reminded that their ancestors were slave owners. Do students, then, study history at our 'flagship university' in order to forget it?"


More:
After nearly two years, the UK task force concluded that the mural should be displayed, but with a wall text alongside it to give historical context to the work. In April 2017, the administration removed the drapery and the mural was once again visible; signage describing its history, including the concerns voiced about it over the years, was added nearby.
 
"The president further objects to the fresco on the ground that it reminds 'one black student... that his ancestors were slaves.' That statement has at least two arresting implications: (1) that black students should not ever be reminded that their ancestors were slaves, and (2) that white students should not ever be reminded that their ancestors were slave owners. Do students, then, study history at our 'flagship university' in order to forget it?"
 
The task force concluded the mural should be displayed, but with a wall text alongside it to give historical context to the work. The mural remained covered until April 2017 when the drapery was removed and the mural was once again put on display but with signage describing its history, including the concerns voiced about it over the years.


In a blog post, UK President Capilouto stated:
In a blog post, UK President Capilouto stated:
Retrieved from "https://wiki.ncac.org/University_of_Kentucky_Memorial_Hall_mural"