Talks

Join Arthur Jafa, artist and filmmaker, and Enjoli Moon, founder and director of the Afrikana Independent Film Festival, for a conversation about Jafa’s use of cinematic qualities in his film and media.

Arthur Jafa has for more than 30 years been creating imagery that examines how the Black experience is constructed and consumed in contemporary culture. His work includes films, paintings, sculptures, and installations. Jafa's Big Wheel I is now on view in the Cochrane Atrium as part of the special exhibition Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys, which opens Nov 22. And his time-based media installation is on view Dec 7–14 as part of the REWIND<<FastForward series.

Enjoli Moon founded the Afrikana Independent Film Festival in 2014 to showcase the cinematic works of people of color, with a special focus on the global Black narrative. Its mission is to “present high-quality, well-crafted stories that celebrate the diaspora and encourage people to connect.” 

If you ponder the question, "Is there a God?" you will inevitably struggle to produce a simple, clear answer. How do we describe the universe and our place in it? Poets throughout the ages have used the idea of love to attempt an answer, including the 14th-century north Indian Sufi poet Maulana Da'ud. Dr. Richard Cohen will discuss how Maulana Da'ud gave his best to answer some of life's biggest questions through his poetry, given visual form in a number of illustrated manuscripts of his magnum opus the Chandayan.

The VMFA Circle Lecture Series is open to all members beginning at the Friends Circle level. This program will be offered in person and virtually, via Zoom. Click here to register for the livestream.

Jamel Shabazz is one of the acclaimed artists featured in Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys. Join us for a conversation between Shabazz and Dr. LaCharles Ward, Supervisory Museum Curator of Photography and Film and Director of the Earl W. and Amanda Stafford Center for African American Media Art at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History & Culture.

Known for his vibrant street photography, Shabazz captured the emergence of hip-hop culture, presenting images of urban youth with dignity and respect in an effort to combat negative stereotypes of Black communities. Dr. Ward will talk with Shabazz about his practice and experience, beginning with 1980s New York and continuing to the present.

To watch from the comfort of home, visit our livestream page.

Artist Nick Cave is one of the renowned artists featured in Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys. Cave joins Valerie Cassel Oliver, VMFA's Sydney and Frances Lewis Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, for a conversation about Cave's artistic practice and body of work, which includes his Soundsuit series. Works from that series are currently on view at VMFA in the Giants exhibition and in the museum's 21st-Century Art Gallery.

To watch from the comfort of home, visit our livestream page.