Close Read

Artist, Curator, Producer

Connect + Collect Gallery
2519 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21218

August 27 - October 9, 2020
Screening nightly, sunset - 11pm
And streaming online on the Baltimore Museum of Art’s Screening Room.

Close Read is a group exhibition featuring new work by three Baltimore-based photographers: Akea Brionne Brown, SHAN Wallace and Savannah Wood. Each artist has spent time conducting research in the historic AFRO American Newspapers’ archives, and has created new work inspired by their findings. The exhibition opened August 27, 2020 at Baltimore’s Connect + Collect Gallery, which is sited in the former AFRO headquarters.

This project marks the first time that artists have been explicitly invited to work with the AFRO American Newspapers’ archives. Brown dissects a pamphlet about urban renewal, redacting its promotional language to reveal a different message about its underlying negative effects. Wallace’s animated photo collages combine her own images with photos from the AFRO archives to celebrate nearly a century of Black women’s play and labor. Wood follows a genealogical trail, connecting the AFRO’s roots back to a former plantation (now a state park) in Montgomery County. The work produced for this show highlights different artistic approaches to archival inquiry, with Baltimore’s Black communities as a common thread.

The artwork was projected on the gallery windows nightly from sunset to 11pm, allowing for an in-person art experience while maintaining physical-distancing protocols. The work is also screening online on the Baltimore Museum of Art’s Screening Room.

Close Read is produced by Savannah Wood and the AFRO American Newspapers. This project is supported by a grant from the Grit Fund, which is an initiative of Baltimore Arts Realty Corporation. Additional funding was provided by the Awesome Foundation and Afro Charities.

Thanks to Peter Smith and Teri Henderson for technical support.