Amit Primor
"Allied in the Fight: Jews, Blacks and the Struggle for Civil Rights" at Jewish Museum Milwaukee
In one of his recent stand-up specials, Dave Chappelle quipped that Jews and African Americans love to argue about which group has suffered more. But the truth of the matter is that injustice has commonly made marginalized groups collaborators instead of competitors. “Allied in the Fight: Jews, Blacks and the Struggle for Civil Rights,” on view at the Jewish Museum Milwaukee from Jan. 19 through March 25, presents historical photographs, letters, maps, films and other rare documents to explore how African American and Jewish communities have historically allied against injustice.
“Allied in the Fight: Jews, Blacks and the Struggle for Civil Rights” is part of the Milwaukee-wide initiative “200 Nights of Freedom,” which commemorates the 50th anniversary of the 1967-68 Open Housing Marches. The exhibition includes a letter from Martin Luther King Jr. to Paula Pappenheim, correspondence between Eleanor Roosevelt and activist Justine Wise Polier, the uniform of NAACP Youth Council Milwaukee Commando Fred Reed and portraits from the new series “Black. Leadership. Milwaukee.” by photographer Jim Seder. “Allied in the Fight: Jews, Blacks and the Struggle for Civil Rights” is accompanied by events in February, March and April intended to spur dialogue. For more information, visit jewishmuseummilwaukee.org/events.
Premiere Performance of Kim Miller’s “The Colony”
Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum
2220 N. Terrace Ave.
“Back To School,” currently on display at the Villa Terrace, finds accomplished artists showing current work along with art they created during their school years. The result is rich in insight about constancy and development in artistic vision. In conjunction with the exhibition, artist and performer Kim Miller has created a “pedagogical performance” entitled The Colony. The work, set in an art school, explores the dynamics of power and language in the student-teacher relationship. Miller’s performance takes place at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 18.
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“Goodhopehouse”
Galerie Kenilworth
2201 N. Farwell Ave.
“Goodhopehouse,” the third exhibition to be staged at the new Galerie Kenilworth, translates the compound noun Gutehoffnungshütte, the name of a German steel manufacturer whose I-beams still support many a German edifice. Such is the case in the studio shared by the seven Berlin-based artists displaying work in the exhibition. Steel beams are also iconic of the artists’ spare, abstract paintings. An opening reception will be held 7-10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 19. Three of the exhibiting artists will be in attendance.
