The Lebanon Valley Council on the Arts held a First Friday celebration Feb. 7 showing off exhibits for Black History Month as well as art submitted by students at Our Lady of the Cross and Paloma School.
Council member Myra Kitchen, also involved in the Lebanon County NAACP, explained that the Black History Month exhibit was started a few years ago to highlight Black culture and art as well as create an opportunity for local artists (in particular students at nearby schools) to display their work.
“It brings the community together and it gets people to communicate and share ideas and thoughts,” said Kitchen. “It’s a social celebration, and we need more of that.”
Exhibits encompass both local art and cultural pieces owned by locals lent to the exhibit and range from paintings to traditional-style masks to pottery and textiles, she explained.
February is Black History Month, and across the country activists, historians, artists, and community members celebrate the contributions of Black people throughout history and into the modern day.
Kitchen said that this event gives young people a chance to see Black culture and history they may not have otherwise been exposed to. She cited Langston Hughes, a Harlem Renaissance jazz poet, activist, and novelist as one among many brilliant African Americans who left their marks on history and culture.
“For the kids, it’s a way for them to explore the history of the African American community,” she said. “You always hear about slavery, but we are so much more than that.”
She added that Black history is part of history, not separate from it.
“It should be more than just a month of celebration, it should be a whole year of celebration of the contributions of African Americans,” said Kitchen.
She said that she was very happy with turnout to the exhibit, as well as participation in it by both Black and non-Black artists.
“It makes me really happy to see the amount of people that have turned out to support us,” said Kitchen.
The artists
Lily Delagrange
Our Lady of the Cross student Lily Delagrange, 12, wanted to make a piece celebrating Black history. Her mom told her about Ruby Bridges — a still-living civil rights activist known for being the first Black child to enter a Louisiana all-white school at age 6.
One of only six African American children entering the school in 1960, Ruby was accompanied by U.S. Marshals as protests opposing integration gathered outside.
“The story moved me, especially because she was a schoolgirl,” said Delagrange.
Delagrange’s mother helped her to find news articles that painted a picture of what the world looked like in 1960, with activists fighting for integration in public spaces, governmental steps toward desegregation, and pushback and boycotts from white people in opposition. Delagrange used snippets from these articles as a backdrop for a collage portrait of Ruby.
“I think that we can take a lot of courage and bravery from it,” said Delagrange. “Especially for Ruby, she was just 6 years old and that shows that anybody of any age can be brave enough to do anything.”
Delagrange said Ruby’s story motivates her to try to help people and push for change. When asked about modern-day applications of this message, she said: “Don’t be afraid to stand up for what’s right.”
She said she enjoys making collages and plans to continue making art in the future. On knowing history, Delagrange said, “I feel like it’s important because you can learn from other people’s mistakes as well as other people’s bravery.”
Myra Kitchen
In addition to her role organizing, Kitchen also had a fair share of art on display. One piece was a large, colorful quilt on proud display opposite paintings.
Two of her pieces are multi-media, depicting Black women with hair abstractly recreated by tinsel, popping out at viewers.
When asked how long she has been an artist, she said she has recently had her 69th birthday, so 69 years. She said every piece is different, and she dabbles in a variety of mediums and styles.
“I always dabbled in art, and I came to the realization that I’m a creative person,” Kitchen said. “I’ve never had a piece that I can recreate exactly; I have an eye for what I want to do and I buy it in pieces and put it together.”
Live music
While he and performance-mates Michael Guerrisi and Bruce Ford warmed up, Michael Kitchen chatted with the audience about his upbringing and family. Myra’s husband, Michael joked that his name was spelled just like the room, and that his home had six Kitchens until his kids started moving out.
He reflected on the strong family values he was raised with, fondly remembering how extended family would always offer invitations, which were usually accepted.
“The bond is always strong in African American families,” Kitchen said. “We always looked out for each other.”
The three played guitar, with Kitchen singing, for most of the three-hour event.
AJ Hansen
Local artist AJ Hansen not only submitted multiple pieces to the gallery, but added finishing touches to a piece during Friday’s event. The piece depicts a Black father and son, with Hansen looking to celebrate Black fatherhood.
“I was inspired by some really amazing Black dads who don’t get the credit they should,” explained Hansen.
As she added textured paint to the pair’s hair (a medium she explained was mostly new to her), Hansen received feedback from Kitchen on the subjects’ hairstyles.
“I am, clearly, white, and I want to accurately depict this piece of art,” said Hanse. “I was asking her opinion on what was the current style and what she thought was a good depiction of the hairstyle I’m trying to go for.
“I always like getting feedback from other people no matter what type of art I’m doing, but especially if I’m out of my realm.”
A multi-media artist, Hansen is also displaying works in colored pencil, oil paint, charcoal, and more.
Hansen emphasized the role art can play in activism and fostering acceptance and community.
“I think art is a really great tool to get a message across,” she explained. “I think it’s a very powerful thing because it connects with the creative part of people. I think sometimes people who aren’t aware, it’s just because they haven’t stopped and thought, sometimes. And having it right there in your face helps.”
Our Lady of the Cross
In addition to Lily, students of all ages at Our Lady of the Cross submitted artwork to First Friday. Art teacher Mair Brice said the kids weren’t prompted to make anything in particular, they were just asked to express themselves however felt right to them.
Brice started teaching art at the school on a volunteer basis last year after learning her sons, Arthur and Simon, didn’t have an art class. This year, she became the school’s official art teacher.
It’s not that the kids hadn’t had an art class before, Brice explained, but that Our Lady of the Cross is a new school — opened in 2021 — that didn’t have an art program yet. Most students enrolled at the school after the closure of Lebanon Catholic School, which had art classes.
The Paloma School also had art on display Friday, part of a series by the Council on the Arts to show art from local schools.
The exhibit, at 770 Cumberland St., is open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will remain until the end of the month.
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