Exhibitions

What does American art tell us about American attitudes toward race? Through the Eyes of Others: African Americans and Identity in American Art explores the complicated issues surrounding race in American culture as seen in paintings and sculptures from the 19th and 20th centuries. This exhibition juxtaposes 19th-century views of American life with contemporary interpretations by prominent African American artists to examine how we, as Americans, have constructed and interpreted race. Many of the art works and artifacts were amassed by 19th-century collector Stephen C. Clark and the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York. Additional selections were culled from various public and private collections, including the New York State Museum.

Through the Eyes of Others: African Americans and Identity in American Art is organized by the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York, and curated by Gretchen Sullivan Sorin, director and Distinguished Professor of the Cooperstown Graduate Program. The exhibition, the latest exhibition in the Bank of America Great Art Series, is made possible in part with funding from The Institute for Museum and Library Services.