Southampton Cultural Center Celebrates Black History Month

In celebration of “Black History Month,” the Southampton Cultural Center will offer East End residents an opportunity to experience black culture via works of art, lectures and a live jazz performance.

During an interview earlier this month, Southampton Cultural Center Executive Director Kirsten Lonnie said that the “Black History Month” celebration, curated by Arlene Bujese and now in its second year, serves as a compelling tool to continue the artistic dialogue of African-American artists from within the community and beyond.

“The aim of the exhibit is to educate. We want to pay tribute to diversity while creating an inclusive experience for all who attend,” said Ms. Lonnie.

To get the celebration started, the band Touché will offer listeners a musical history lesson through jazz saxophone and bass on Friday, February 11, at 7 p.m. General admission tickets are $15, or $10 for students.

Additionally, a “Visual Heritage II” art exhibit, which opened last week, features works by Brent Bailer, Sheila Batiste, Nancy Brandon, Maxine Townsend Broderick and Reynold Ruffins and will remain on display through the end of the month. Ms. Bujese will lead a gallery talk on the exhibit on Saturday, February 12, at 2 p.m.

As participating artist Brent Bailer explained during a recent interview, the significance of Southampton Cultural Center’s “Black History Month” celebration is that it is about unity, not separation.

“While I don’t think of myself as a black artist, [the fact is] that is how I am perceived by the community at large,” he said. “While there are certainly differences in communities, we are all part of the same culture. This show helps bring that to light and enables us to know each other better as members of the same group. Events like this help bring us together.”

Fellow artist Reynold Ruffins also noted, “[The show] allows young black Americans to see and identify with the art and the artist.”

Festivities will continue on Saturday, February 12, at 7 p.m. with the first of four lectures given by Professor Kimble Humiston of the Center for World Cultural Studies of New York City. The four-part lecture series will focus on the history of the American Civil Rights Movement with particular emphasis on the role of major contributors, such as Harriet Tubman, W.E.B. DuBois, Booker T. Washington, Malcolm X and the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Remaining lectures will be held on Friday, February 18, at 5 p.m., Saturday, February 19, at 1 p.m. and Friday, February 25, at 5 p.m.

For more information about the Southampton Cultural Center’s celebration of “Black History Month,” visit southamptonculturalcenter.org.