Virtual Program: Affrilachian Freedom Dreaming: Honoring Dr. Ancella Bickley

Join Art in the Libraries and WVU Libraries on Friday, March 28 at 10 a.m. via zoom to hear from Booker about her experience as the first WVU Feminist Activist Artist Resident, her process and inspiration for exploring the Dr. Ancella Bickley archives in the West Virginia & Regional History Center and her resulting artistic product, a short film honoring Bickley.

Catron Booker, a Black feminist experimental filmmaker and performance artist, uses Afrofuturism to envision Black liberation. During the Feminist Activist Collection Artist in Residency (FAIR), she will create Affrilachian Freedom Dreaming, a short experimental film exploring Black resistance through the Dr. Ancella Bickley archival collection of the West Virginia and Regional History Center Feminist Activist Collection. Dr. Ancella Bickley (born 1930, Huntington, WV) is a historian, educator, and author known for preserving and documenting the history of Black communities in West Virginia, with a focus on oral histories, genealogy, and the contributions of overlooked Black scholars and activists. Inspired by Bickley’s focus on overlooked “community builders,” Booker will interweave archival materials with footage of the Ohio River, a historically significant landmark in Louisville. The project examines the river as both a visual metaphor and a site of historical continuity. As part of the residency, she plans a film screening and community discussion, potentially including a conversation on Bickley’s work.

To register: https://wvu.libcal.com/calendar/events/FAIR

More on the event: Art in the Libraries to host feminist activist artist to wrap inaugural residency program | Ex Libris Magazine | West Virginia University

More on Catron Booker: https://catronbooker.tumblr.com/

More on the Feminist Activist Artist in Residency Program: https://exhibits.lib.wvu.edu/special-projects/artist-in-residency

Questions: Email WVU Libraries Curator Sally Brown, sally.brown1@mail.wvu.edu.