Black Duluth in History

The Life, The Work, The Fight: Black Duluth in History is an exhibit that showcases the stories and history of Black Duluthians. The project combines excerpts of recent oral histories of African American elders in Duluth with historical roles dating back to the late 19th Century to show the depth and complexity of intertwining histories. The theme panels help provide context to the stories and experiences of those featured in the biography panels.

I played the role of designer for this project, conceptualizing the vision of the curator and placing the photos and information together. The curator, Jordon Moses, compiled this information and presented the work in themes, and organized the show. The photographer of the present day photos present on the biography panels was Daniel Oyinloye. Aimee Brown who helped find photographs for the panels. Many of the photographs are housed amongst the University of Minnesota Duluth Kathryn A. Martin Library Archives and Special Collections.This project would not be made possible without the individuals who were willing to take part in this process by sharing their stories. Many thanks to David Woodward, Rachel Phelps Horton, Yana Davis, MizJanetta Paul, and Kiesha Nason for acting as interviewers and helping collect these recordings. Zeitgeist Arts hosted this exhibit and supporting our efforts.

This event was sponsored by Clayton Jackson McGhie Memorial Inc., with the support of the Minnesota Historical Society and the Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation. This exhibition was made possible in part by the people of Minnesota through a grant funded by an appropriation to the Minnesota Historical Society from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. Special thanks to Heidi Bakk-Hansen, Project Dir. & Historical Researcher, and Drew Digby, Assistant Project Director.