HOUSTON – The Children’s Museum Houston has unveiled a brand-new art exhibit which celebrates people, places and defining moments in African American history, just in time for Juneteenth.
“Everyday People: The Art of James E. Ransome” is a collection of more than 50 vivid oil, acrylic and watercolor paintings produced by Coretta Scott King and NAACP Image award-winning children’s book illustrator, James E. Ransome.
It is a colorful collection which holds Ransome’s most thought-provoking illustrations sourced from more than 50 children’s books drawn over the span of nearly three decades.
The focus of the exhibit is on a variety of people: famous people, historical people, unfamiliar people, and everyday people.
It depicts inspiring stories about famous and historical figures, like Louis Armstrong, Frederick Douglass, baseball player Satchel Paige and Sojourner Truth.
But also conveys defining moments in history through the eyes of everyday people, like the Voting Rights Act, attending school following the Emancipation Proclamation and more.
It introduces stories of unfamiliar figures like Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, who was champion fencer, classical composer, virtuoso violinist, and conductor of the leading symphony orchestra in Paris in the 1700s;
Or Benny Goodman and Teddy Wilson, who took the stage as the first black-and-white jazz band in history in 1935.
It also captures precious moments in time of everyday people just living their lives!
