The UNB Art Centre celebrates Black History Month by bringing portraits of notable Black New Brunswickers to the streets of Fredericton for the second year.
The UNB Art Centre celebrates Black History Month by bringing portraits of notable Black New Brunswickers to the streets of Fredericton for the second year. Along with last year’s banners, nine new faces have been added including Constable Robb Costello who was killed in the line of duty in 2018, Eliza Taylor known as the “Belle of Loch Lomond,” and Cornelius Sparrow who despite the racist laws of the era managed to open thriving businesses in the City of Saint John. Banners featuring Black New Brunswickers will be displayed on Regent and Westmorland Streets throughout the month of February. In partnership with UNB’s Bi-Campus Standing Committee on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Human Rights, and the City of Fredericton, this project recognizes the achievements and experiences of Black New Brunswickers and their significant contribution to shaping contemporary New Brunswick.
As part of this ongoing project, the UNB Art Centre will present the next installment of Rediscovering the Roots of Black New Brunswickers in the West Gallery at Memorial Hall on March 11- April 22. This special research project engages UNB students and members of the Black community in bringing to light those Black New Brunswickers who have strived for freedom and equality in a world of prejudice and discrimination. The latest exhibit features the faces and stories of the nine new additions to the banner project, including the three mentioned above, along with poet Anna Minerva Henderson, educator Brian Carty, community volunteer John Young, soldier Robert Lawrence Henry, Paralympic athlete Frank Henderson, and boxer Louis Sterling Lawrence.
The UNB Art Centre encourages audiences to visit them online in March to view the latest installment of Rediscovering the Roots of Black New Brunswickers. For more about the UNB Art Centre’s various exhibits celebrating Black History Month visit their website and select the tab Past Exhibitions.
The UNB Art Centre is located at Memorial Hall, 9 Bailey Drive, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton. The galleries are open 9 am – 4 pm weekdays and during special events. Admission is free to members of the public, however proof of vaccination and masks are required.
