The Hite Art Institute at UofL will present 鈥淯nderground Railroad 2015,鈥 an exhibition featuring four series of works by Professor Mark Priest from Jan. 29 to Feb. 28.
The exhibition includes 74 drawings and paintings exploring slavery in America and the impact it continues to have on American life. There are four series of works, each focusing on a historically significant person or place: The Frederick Douglass Drawing Series; the Nalle Series based on Charles Nalle; the Tubman Series based on Harriet Tubman; and the Stewart鈥檚 Canal series based on the site of Joseph Stewart鈥檚 Canal.
鈥淣arrative of the Early Years of Frederick Douglass: Drawing Series鈥 will be on display at UofL鈥檚 Cressman Center for Visual Arts, 100 East Main St. 鈥淟ife of a Freedom Seeker: Paintings and Drawings鈥 encompasses the other three series and will be on display at the Schneider Hall Galleries on UofL鈥檚 Belknap campus.
Priest has been working on the series since 2003 when his son wrote a paper on Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. As he listened to his son read the paper, Priest began to envision what could be done from an artistic standpoint. 鈥淚t had so much intriguing history and reality about it,鈥 Priest said. 鈥淚t inspired me to start the series.鈥
鈥淯nderground Railroad 2015鈥 also includes a public education component. The Underground Railroad Symposium will be Thursday, Feb. 5, at the Schneider Hall Galleries. Guest lecturers include UofL Professor Emeritus Robert Douglas and J.O.K. Walsh, a historian and storyteller from Denton, Md.
The opening reception for the Schneider Hall display will follow the symposium from 5-7 p.m., Feb. 5. The opening reception for the Cressman Center display will be held from 5-9 p.m., Friday, Feb. 6 at the center. All events are free and open to the public.
For more information, visit . Gallery hours can be found at . Funding for the lectures provided by UofL鈥檚 Commission on Diversity and Racial Equality (CODRE).聽