First, I saw a dark wooden sign with large white letters that told me I was at the right place: The historic site of Dr. James Still, known as the “Black Doctor of the Pines.”…
Auction Finds Posts
Back in 1960, a young New York couple bought a small Jacob Lawrence painting at a charity art auction. Apparently unbeknownst to them, it was No. 16 of 30 paintings (or panels) in his series…
The trunk was an eyesore. It was big and ugly with patches of its black cover missing, revealing the wood underneath. The wooden slats were dirty, and the metal hinges were rusty. The interior was…
Penchant for flowers shows in designs of Hubert Le Gall
Posted in Art, Decorating, furniture, and Home
I was attracted to the unconventionality of the vase and flowers. Both wore a brilliant color of gold, and the flowers looked so real as their blossoms hung limply on the stems. How different. The…
The trash can touched on a memory. So did the name. There was something familiar about its style, colors, and the cacophony of shapes and pieces plastered onto it. The auction house listed it as…
“Black Lives Matter” signs from the creative to store-bought
Posted in Black history, history, and Signs
My next-door neighbor was the first on my street with a “Black Lives Matter” sign erected in her front yard. She pushed it into the black-mulched ground among her hosta plants not long after the…
Children’s books illustrated by African American artist John Wilson
Posted in Art, Black history, and Books
I knew exactly what I was looking for as I flipped through the carts of children’s books lined up in a hallway outside the abandoned school library. I wondered if there were any books with…
Hip hop reaches crowning heights at Sotheby’s sale
Posted in collectibles, Culture, and Music
On first glance, it would appear to be a simple gold crown, like the plastic headgear worn by many little boys playing king in an elementary school play. This one was bigger, with a few…
Artist Ann Tanksley – ‘My voice is in my painting’
Posted in African American women, Art, and Black history
As a child, Gertrude Ann Graves had difficulty expressing herself. She stuttered. She wasn’t as lovely as her sister, whom relatives gushed over. She was a quiet girl who retreated to an apple tree on…
Early voting machine reminds us of gains that could be lost
Posted in Black history, civil rights movement, and history
The gray metal machine looked innocent enough, but I knew that it was a remnant from an unhinged Jim Crow past. It didn’t have the power to stop anyone from voting, but the people who…