Black Chronicles II

"They are here because you were there. There is no understanding Englishness without understanding its imperial and colonial dimensions.” Stuart Hall 2008. There are two ways to view Spellman Museum of Fine Art’s latest exhibition, Black Chronicles II. One is through a historical perspective; an analysis of what, and whom, was present during Victorian era England. The exhibition is certainly an emphatic window into the past, despite the presence the portraits render. “They could have been taken yesterday,” were some of the comments I overheard. However, as historically significant as the imagery is, to fully appreciate the depth of the pictures, a cultural lens is how the exhibition is to be viewed.

Stuart Hall (1932-2014), a cultural theorist whom the exhibition is dedicated to, spent a career examining cultural identity in the context of modern and colonial society. His quote above opens a dialogue that begins to turn the Black Chronicle portraits back on the viewer. Originally published in an English newspaper in 1891, the portraits emphasized the “otherness” of the black faces. Interestingly, the term black applied as easily to an Indian person as it did an African, a reflective reminder of colonial influence. What these pictures are really doing, however, is showing the viewer English society. They are showing us England.

What does it mean to be British? That is the primary question Black Chronicles is addressing. A black man of African descent living in England, Stuart Hall was, himself, born in Kingston, Jamaica. He said, “Britain is my home, but I am not English.” One’s identity is shaped, largely, by society. Hall would argue that we must take into account the context of our own cultural relationship with society. I keep thinking of boxing champion Peter Jackson, The Black Prince, and Sarah Forbes Bonetta, Queen Victoria’s Goddaughter, two portraits presented in Black Chronicles. Their presence is nothing short of high English aristocracy, and with only a superficial view one is completely unaware of the historical context of how these two individuals came to be in England. Are they English? It is a question that this exhibition is asking the viewer.

By extension, and no doubt the presence of Black Chronicles at Spellman College, the exhibition is also addressing American identity, particularly African American identity. There is a strong correlation between African presence in Victorian England and the United States, a result of colonization and imperialism, and examining these portraits one also begins to ask: What is an American? I think Professor Hall presented these types of inquiries to his students because society structured definitions, historical and cultural definitions are all quite different, despite the fact that they are addressing the same issue. These photographs are asking analogous questions, and forcing the viewer to engage the answers through a cultural critique.

If Cultural Marxism, or Deconstruction Theory is not a topic of interest to you, then Black Chronicles II also presents the best wet-plate collodion prints I’ve seen lately. After uncovering the glass plate negatives, master printer Mike Spry was called upon to prep the photographs for exhibition. There is a hyper-real quality to the prints. The tones have a unique depth, sizing is apropos (larger than life size) and it is true, “They could have been shot yesterday.” The relationship the viewer has to these figures is symbiotic. I feel the boxer Peter Jackson’s sense of pride, and in turn I am proud of him. Each portrait looks back at you, and if they don’t make you question your own identity, look closer. 

Teaching

I have been doing a lot of teaching recently, in part because my graduate program requires it. I was also tasked with developing a short Philosophy of Teaching essay. It is much more a curriculum formality than it is a concrete philosophical text, but I thought it would be interesting to share it here. 

Teaching Philosophy                                                                                                                                                                            

A successful teaching philosophy must take into account how effectively complex information is communicated to other people. Communication therefore is, in my view, the most important aspect of teaching. Conceptual academic concepts require guidance. My role, as an instructor, is to provide that guidance in such a way that students not only comprehend the material, but can communicate it back to me. I seek to create a balance between preparation, dialogue and the teacher/student relationship in order to establish the most efficient academic environment. 

Recently I delivered a lecture on Freudian Psychoanalysis. It was a basic structural outline of his life, his theories and their application. When I was later speaking with a student, she offered me some feedback as to my style of delivery. She suggested that I slow down during my lectures, particularly when it is dense and complex. Though I know the information well, those I am lecturing do not. I agreed with her critique, and in my own mind I critiqued myself further. What strategies, or knowledge, must an instructor take into account in order to be an effective teacher? While no specific answer exists, my philosophy is a balance of multiple variables.  

Firstly, students learn on different levels. That is to say, some students grasp concepts better than others. Understanding that fact is one thing, but redressing it requires an instructor to be firmly engaged in the classroom. I am a believer in the Socratic philosophy that questions tend to answer themselves when guided correctly and posed often. While tests and quizzes serve as a guidepost, a method for student evaluation, the strongest evaluation occurs during class time. Engaging students, and encouraging them to apply the concepts learned, create an environment that allows the students to better comprehend the material and allows the instructor to evaluate his own effectiveness.

I believe that the most efficient teaching style is one that opens dialogue in the classroom. This is not always possible, nor literal, however. A lecture hall with 200 students does not allow for dialogue the way a smaller room does. It is, therefore, the instructor’s job to engage the room proactively. When I lecture, I look for positive feedback cues from students. Much of that feedback is in the form of body language. Are they interested or bored? Are they engaged? I ask myself those questions during a presentation, and look to the students for answers. I constantly read the room and make adjustments if needed. It is a back and forth process between student and lecturer.

Lastly, preparation is something that no teacher can afford to overlook. No matter how well I know a subject, I rediscover it, reread it and prepare it before a lecture. When posing challenging concepts to students, I must know the answer before I ask the question. The answers students present may provide surprising insight, and they often do, but I have a roadmap of where I want the material to lead. Any group discussion, or lecture for that matter, can go off onto tangents if the presenter is not prepared.

The best teachers I have known were excellent communicators. They spoke directly, knowingly and efficiently. When questions were posed, the answers were used to drive the curriculum forward and further entrench key concepts. My philosophy emulates that style by striking a balance between lecture and discussion, knowing the material well through preparation and accepting that students have a responsibility to the material and to the class itself. If I can balance those notions, present the curriculum effectively and address the limitations that exist, then I will fulfill my role as a teacher, and create an academic environment that serves the students well.   

Divide & Conquer?

How do creative teams function best? The conventional wisdom is to delegate tasks, and let the result come together after each person has done their part. Tasks are assigned based on expertise. Sally, for example, is a graphic designer, so her job doesn’t stray far from that field. More specifically, her specialty is logo design, so that is the job she is being tasked with. That makes sense. Assign people roles based on what they’re comfortable with or what they are capable of. “Play to their strengths.” This is excellent advice because it is difficult to refute. We certainly wouldn’t assign Sally a video production task. However, great work is never produced by someone that is comfortable with their role.

If the goal of a team project is to produce avant-garde work, I want to be assigned the difficult, the challenging and the intensive. I don’t want something that ‘plays to my strengths,’ I want something that pushes me to the limit of what I am capable of. In other words, I don’t want to be comfortable with my assignment. Otherwise, what is the point?

Too often, however, this line of thinking is translated as producing more content, assigning more tasks or asking for the truly impossible. I’m not advocating that Sally, to use the example above, should do ten logos instead of one simply because it is more challenging and pushes her to the brink of a nervous breakdown. That is counterproductive. What I am suggesting is that her work, whatever it is, push her to her creative limit. Perhaps, even push her beyond her creative capability.

I don’t like the idea of team members feeling confident with the tasks they are assigned. I want them to feel confident that they can deliver no matter what tasks are assigned. Those are very different conceptual lines of thought. The former places confidence in the group, while the latter places confidence in each member of the group. Creative people want challenging creative tasks. Tasks that push their creative boundaries. Feeling completely confident in one’s assignment yields either mediocre or average results. Feeling confident about one’s self, knowing that one can complete a difficult task, no matter what it is, yields creative results. 

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