Black Muses

Place-des-Arts is a very important arts center for this city and as the largest arts complex in Canada it is well renowned and respected. So its no small thing that the Montreal's Black History Month roundtable and Place-des-Arts have been collaborating for the past four years to bring Black-centric expositions to the public in the espace culturel Georges-Émile-Lapalme during Black History Month. This year's exposition was named Black Muses and featured 12 Black female musicians who have greatly impacted Canadian music and paved the way for their sistren. Also part of the exposition were the paintings of six local black female artists who paid tribute to some of their own Black muses and the exposition's poster was designed a Black woman from Montreal. I'm loving the theme here. The vernissage happened this past month with the always welcomed round of wine & appetizers and they gave out black history month pins, bags and calendars, which I was glad to indulge in. There were a few speeches from key members from the round table and a few of the participants but the one speech that really touched me was from one of the Black Muses, Rana Lee, who graciously accepted her honor but also reminded us that "we've come a long way and we have a long way to go. Our journey will always be long but it will be always be strong."

This is an important exposition worth seeing and praising, but we can't forget that there is still serious work to be done in terms of recognition and representation for Black people (and particularly Black women) in Montreal and Canada. Just a few months ago if you happened to be walking by Montreal's Museum of Fine Arts you would have seen a large advertisement for their exposition The Colour of Jazz (La Couleur du Jazz), which showcased a large portrait of a white woman. This exposition actually had less to do with the colour of Jazz and more to do with the painters from The Beaver Hall Group, which is an exposition that is worth appreciating but the branding and representation of this exposition erases the undeniable contribution of Black people in Montreal (and the World). This erasure and misrepresentation are the types of aggressions that the Black communities of Montreal (and beyond) deal with on a daily and we need to get to a point where we are not only acknowledged during Black History Month (and as women not only acknowledge on International Women's day) but also fairly acknowledged and represented when we speak about Canadian history in general.

Black people (and women!) have been making to the country for centuries now and we should be getting ourselves informed about this history no matter the date or month. 

The exposition highlighted a few important names to check out but this isn't even the tip the iceberg, do your research and you'll be amazed.

If you're looking for a place to start your research on Black history in Montreal I highly suggest checking out the Black Community Resource Center (BCRC), they have an amazing archive of information and are constantly initiating great projects. Currently they have a project called Standing on their Shoulders, which highlights and preserves the Black English-speaking history of Montreal's Little Burgundy district. They created a video series exhibit that is playing at CEREV until March 16th. 

Another great resource is Le Centre International de Documentation et d'Information Haïtienne, Caribéenne et Afro-canadienne (CIDIHCA), which is an unbelievably rich archive on Blackness in Montreal.

Enjoy your digging,
-MF 

--MF hosts Creators Chorus every Wednesday from 5 to 6 PM EST.