By Daniel Kieffer

Drury University had the privilege of opening an exhibit in the Pool Art Center gallery featuring the art of Kerry Stuart Coppin this past Friday, March 8.

“In My Father's House: Contemporary Photographs of Urban Africa” shows Coppin's ambition to produce provocative photographic interpretations that elaborate and celebrate positive aspects of the Black community experience. He is particularly interested in the urban Black African experience.

He is convinced (in the words of bell hooks) that "the lives of black people are complex, and are therefore worthy of sophisticated critical analysis and reflection..." He is trying to use photography as a tool, an instrument, to "change the way we as Black people look at ourselves and the world..." and he hopes through his work to contribute to our sense of a world community; to help "create a world where Blackness, and Black people, can be looked upon with open eyes..."

“ The show is extremely important because it focuses on the positive aspects of community life and captures the beauty of human beings who can easily be stereotyped, ” says Rebecca Miller, assistant professor of art & art history and director of the Pool Art Center Gallery. “ With Drury's interest in global awareness, cultural diversity, and study abroad this exhibition is a wonderful example of a worldview that may differ from our own and open our minds to the many possibilities and benefits of an experience outside of one's comfort zone. ”

Coppin is interested in pursuing a visual interpretation of the Black urban experience in Africa, because it may be used to shape a reinterpretation of our understanding of the African continent and its rich potential.

Coppin is an associate professor of visual art and Africana studies at Brown University in Providence, R.I. His impressive exhibition record includes more than 45 solo and 90 group exhibitions since 2000. His work is in 31 permanent collections including the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., Art Institute of Chicago, Biblioteque Nationale de France, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Museo Casa de Africa Cuba, and the W. African Research Center, Senegal.

Special thanks go out to Rebecca Denton with the Diversity Center and Charles Taylor with the Office of Academic Affairs for co-sponsoring this exhibition. Additionally, thanks go to Dr. Michael Hill for his work with this year's convocation theme “Hope & Action” which has been an initiative for bringing Coppin to campus.  

The exhibit will be on display from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, through April 1.