Works curated by Maxine Payne part
of current show at Atlanta’s High Museum
CONWAY, Ark. (October 16, 2023) — Hendrix art professor
and photographer Maxine Payne recently returned from the High Museum in
Atlanta, Georgia,
where she attended a special preview of A Long Arc: Photography and the
American South since 1845, an exhibition and book featuring seven works of
photography she has been curating for years.
The exhibition,
which opened September 13 and runs through January 14, 2024, is the first major
survey of Southern photography in 25 years and “reveals the South’s critical
impact on the evolution of the medium, posing timely questions about American
culture and character.” Following its debut at the High, “A Long Arc” will travel to the
Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover (February-July 2024)
and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (September 2024-January 2025). (Read more about the exhibition below)
Payne’s curated works featured in the exhibition and book
include six portraits of Evelyn Massengill made between 1937-41 and a 1946
portrait by Ellie Lee Weems of two sisters and their grumpy cat titled “Ethel
Brown.”
The six portraits of Evelyn Massengill are now part of
the museum’s permanent collection.
In the spring, Payne curated an exhibit featuring the
historic photographic archives of the late Southern photographer Ellie Lee Weems for Institute 193 in Lexington, Kentucky. Her collaborations with
Institute 193 founder Phillip March Jones led to the 2015 Dust-to-Digital
publication of Massengill family photographs in Making
Pictures: Three for a Dime. The Massengill work includes a Hendrix connection too.
Hendrix alum Dr. Richard McKelvey, class of 1964, is the husband of Sondra
Massengill McKelvey. Their sons Erin
McKelvey, class of 1994, and Bill McKelvey, class of 1996, are the grandsons of
Evelyn Massengill.
“It is
personally meaningful to have the Massengill family’s work and Ellie Lee Weems’
work showcased at the esteemed High Museum of
American Art and published by Aperture. This inclusion ensures that the work
becomes part of the documented history of photography, which is significant,”
said Payne, adding that the archives, like many others, were stored in shoe
boxes and attics for decades and their cultural impact was unknown. “This
exhibition and publication contribute to the broader narrative of photography
and make that narrative more whole.”
The experience
of seeing the work of Massengill and Weems work on the same wall with
photographers Walker Evans, Mike Disfarmer, and Peter Sekaer was “incredibly
exciting,” Payne said.
“These
photographers have had a profound impact on my own work and have shaped my
understanding of the power of photography in forming perceptions of the
American South,” she said. “The exhibition as a whole is thorough, and its
chronological arrangement prompts viewers to contemplate the role of
photography in documenting the profound cultural shifts that have occurred in
the South.”
The inclusion
of this work in the exhibition and publication aligns with Payne’s teaching
philosophy, which encourages students “to produce work that is a true
reflection of their time and place.”
“The Massengill
family could have never foreseen their 'three for a dime' photographs becoming
part of photography history,” explained Payne. “They were simply finding
creative ways to make a living and have fun doing it. This approach to
image-making, rooted in place and experience, emphasizes the creative journey
over the pursuit of fame or transient relevance in the art world.”
“It is also
serendipitous that Disfarmer, who has been recognized since the 1970’s by the
art world, photographed the same subjects, from the same rural communities as
the Massengills,” she added. “I have a personal connection to these people and
this place; it’s quite satisfying to have this tiny region of Arkansas
represented this way.”
Despite being
and educated man and a trained photographer, having attended the prestigious
Tuskegee Institute and other commercial photography schools, Ellie Lee Weems’
contribution to representing the black experience and, more specifically, his
community, remains largely underrepresented in the
broader context of photographic history, Payne said.
“Like James Van
Der Zee, Weems’ photographs depict successful and proud black individuals who
are active members of vibrant communities. It is evident that Weems was
dedicated to portraying his subjects in the most favorable light. He captured
the beauty and success of his subjects in images they could take immense pride
in,” she said. “This marked a stark contrast to the images emerging from the
cameras of white photographers in the American South during this era. Weems’
commitment was to his community, not to promoting himself.”
About the Exhibition
The exhibition includes American Civil War-era
photographs demonstrate how the practice of photography transformed across the
nation and established visual codes for articulating national identity and
expressing collective trauma. Photographs created for the Farm Security
Administration in the 1930s to the 1950s demonstrate how that era defined a new
kind of documentary aesthetic that dominated American photography for decades
and included jarring and unsettling pictures exposing economic and racial disparities.
The exhibition also features civil rights–era photographs, which galvanized the
nation with raw depictions of violence and the struggle for justice, as well as
contemporary photography that demonstrates how photographers working today
continue to explore Southern history and themes to grasp American identity.
About Maxine Payne
Currently a professor in the Art Department at Hendrix
College, Maxine Payne works to find ways to engage community in her work and
speaks to the idea of place. She currently shares the Isabelle Peregrin Odyssey
Professorship with author and Hendrix English and creative writing professor
Dr. Tyrone Jaeger. Their collaborative project with Hendrix College students
and alumni, called Audio Visual Arkansas, focuses on collecting digital stories
about Arkansans and can be seen at AVARK.net.
She was awarded the 2013 National Museum of Women in the
Arts, Arkansas Fellowship for her photographic work. Since 2004, she has
photographed hundreds of Arkansas historic bridges for the Arkansas Highway and
Transportation Department.
She received her M.F.A. from the University of Iowa where
she was also an Iowa Arts Fellow. She was selected a Fellow of the American
Photography Institute at New York University, as well as a Fellow of the
College Art Association.
Her work can be seen at www.maxinepayne.com.
About Hendrix College
Founded in 1876, Hendrix
College is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change
the Way You Think About Colleges and celebrated among the country’s leading
liberal arts colleges for academic quality, engaged learning opportunities and
career preparation, vibrant campus life, and value. The Hendrix College
Warriors compete in 21 NCAA Division III sports. Hendrix has been affiliated
with the United Methodist Church since 1884. Learn more at www.hendrix.edu.
“… Through engagement that links the classroom
with the world, and a commitment to diversity, inclusion, justice, and
sustainable living, the Hendrix community inspires students to lead lives of
accomplishment, integrity, service, and joy.”
—Hendrix College Statement of Purpose