Shameia Gatewood
Professor Day-Clark
ART 312
20 September 2013
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
The Reginald F. Lewis Museum is a new museum that is located in downtown Baltimore on E.Pratt st. The museum’s collection is for African American art as well as history and ironically the building is constructed with black exterior walls. Because of the museums youth there is a small admission fee of six dollars for students and eight for general admission. You are greeted in the main lobby with the gift shop to your left, a beautiful large modern stairwell, and a museum café. Located on the second floor is a theatre and a room for special exhibitions. Finally, located on the third floor is the permanent collection which tells of African American history on a national and local level.
During my visit the special exhibit room was filled with color. Upon walking in the first thing I noticed was a larger than life quilt hanging to my left. The quilt seemed to be hand stitched with bright gold trim, black and white photos, and tons of religious symbols stitched throughout. The special exhibit room also housed a few paintings, sculptures, and a giant crochet prayer house that hung from the ceiling. The prayer house, just as the quilt, was larger than life and demanded attention with its vibrant colors and dragon face. The prayer house had a spiritual feeling to it; it rotated slowly and created a feeling of being watched or followed.
The third floor is the permanent collection which tells of African American history on a national yet mainly local level. The permanent collection contains plenty of historic pictures, videos, and audio that keeps you engaged and learning. The collection teaches how slaves brought to Maryland worked on farms, iron forges and shipyards all with skills learned from their homeland. The collection tells stories of HBCU’s of Maryland and their triumph over controversy. This section of the museum is by far my favorite because of the many video and...