Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute Collaborates with
Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts To Present Two New Exhibitions

When news broke about the Trayvon Martin case, curator Shantrelle P. Lewis, director of exhibitions and public programming at the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI), worked quickly to put out a call for artists to respond. CCCADI collaborated with the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) to present two exhibitions that confront the historical stereotyping and criminalization of black men in the United States. H(A)UNTED: A Visual Art Response to the Murder of Trayvon Martin and the Criminalization of Black Men and In a Time of Change: An Exhibition About Black and Latino Boys in the Obama Era are both on view at MoCADA until the end of August.

The public installation of H(A)UNTED features a series of five images of an African American male in a hoodie displayed along MoCADA’s building along South Portland Avenue. The installation explores and confronts the harsh realities that each subject faces and defies on a daily basis because of the color of their skin and the type of clothing that they are wearing. What viewers do not know is that the five men that are featured hold the title of doctor, teacher, activist, restaurant owner and performer, which challenges people to confront stereotypes about appearance. The photographers include: Malik Cumbo, Russell Frederick, Jahse, Dwayne Rodgers and Radcliffe Roye.

The second exhibit, In a Time of Change, is a solo exhibition featuring the photography of New York based artist Delphine Fawundu-Buford. The photography is a profound reflection of the conditions faced by Black and Latino youth in American society during the “Age of Obama.” In the series of photographs Delphine situates her subjects, a Black pre-teen and a Latino teen, in environments that often represent a direct affront to their very existence.  In each scene, both young men confront their surroundings and circumstance.  The perplexing, large-scale images leave the viewer contemplating the destiny of the subjects and their peers.

Dr. Marta Moreno Vega, CCCADI executive director, comments, “We must institute methods to ensure that our young men and women are protected from the daily overt and subtle actions that call into question the value of their existence to the point that others condone violently taking their lives.”

www.MoCADA.org
MoCADA
80 Hanson Pl. #102
Brooklyn, New York 11217