New museum exhibition inspires inclusion by examining past, present

Images from the graphic memoir “Lila Quintero Weaver: Darkroom Drawings” will be on view beginning Tuesday, Dec. 8, and will continue through Sunday, May 30, 2021, in the Chi Omega—Hargis Gallery at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University. The celebrated work of graphic memoirist, illustrator and children’s author Lila Quintero Weaver is featured in this thought-provoking exhibition of 25 original drawings and personal memorabilia.

The artist’s story begins in 1961 when, at age 5, her family immigrated from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Marion, Alabama. Racial inequality already divided the region, and the Civil Rights Movement gained momentum for voting rights and equality.

In February 1965, during the fallout from a peaceful protest that turned violent, an Alabama state trooper murdered U.S. veteran and activist Jimmie Lee Jackson in Marion. This horrific injustice energized the Selma to Montgomery Marches, ultimately capturing the world’s horror and, finally, its attention, on “Bloody Sunday.”

These historic events, along with Weaver’s own immigrant journey, serve as the backdrop of her personal story, “Darkroom Drawings,” heralded by “Book Riot” as one of its “100 Must-Read Graphic Memoirs.” She came to her own artistic practice by observing her father, an amateur photographer, minister and educator, as he documented the events in Marion.

“Through objects such as these drawings, and really through all art, we have an opportunity to examine ourselves,” said Cindi Malinick, director and chief curator. “Just like Weaver, we are witnesses to extraordinary history; how will we record, remember and reflect it?”

Malinick also noted visitors are invited to engage with the exhibition by posting their own experiences and visions for the future on a large-scale reproduction installed in the gallery.

Museum staff collaborated with the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures in the College of Liberal Arts to present the exhibition in both English and Spanish.

“Weaver eloquently addresses her experience as a Latina in a Black-and-white world during this time, so it is imperative to ensure this exhibition and future ones are more accessible to our broad communities,” Malinick said.

The museum is open to the public with reduced capacity. Current exhibitions on view through Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, include “L’Affichomania: The Passion for French Posters,” “Underground Images: A Half-Century of SVA Subway Posters Created by Women” and “Nurture: Audubon’s Nesting Imagery.”

The outdoor juried sculpture exhibition “Out of the Box” is on view through Sunday, March 7, 2021. To plan a visit, go to jcsm.auburn.edu or call 334-844-1484.

Submitted by: Charlotte Hendrix