Whimsical art and Southern culture front and center
Ashley HopkinsonWelcome back to The American South!
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It's been raining a lot in Louisiana so I feel especially stuck indoors, though grateful to be in good health. My spare time is rare but with what I have, I've been creating small art projects. I have that in common apparently, with 88-year-old Jeannette Latimore who says, "I'm too old to get a man, but I have young ideas about art and writing.” Her creations are whimsical and inspiring.
Last week, I spoke about a deep dive into musical legacies with the project Hallowed Sound. It's beautifully curated. The series includes storytelling on the rise of hip-hop in Atlanta with groups like Outkast. Yes, "The South got something to say." It also examines the contributions of HBCUs to Black spiritual music through the lens of the Fisk Jubilee Singers and explores the genres of music that were born and raised on the so-called Chitlin’ Circuit, at the height of segregation in the American South.
Speaking of history, our reporter Maria Clark spoke to the director of Evergreen Plantation in Louisiana about their commitment to portraying the lives of enslaved people who lived and worked on the grounds.
If you need a reason to smile, scroll to the end of the newsletter and watch someone seeing in living color for the first time!
Have a thought? Reach out. I'm here to listen : theamericansouth@gannett.com
Ashley Hopkinson
Editor, The American South.
What's the South talking about?
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park visitors must wear masks.
- New Orleans bars closed for Mardi Gras.
- Morgan Wallen asks fans not to defend him after racial slur.
- Alabama bill would criminalize transgender treatment for minors.
Whimsical art from a great-grandmother in Mississipi
Self-made artist, Jeannette Latimore, has recently realized that what she has been doing for the past few decades is something that can help those experiencing isolation — regardless of age. Jeannette suggests that people go to their drawers and use what they find. One of her most elaborate pieces a three-dimensional fish made of plaster over a mesh form that she made about 25 years ago.
The roaring nights that shaped American music
At the height of segregation in the American South, entire genres of music were born and raised on the so-called Chitlin’ Circuit. In places like Louisville, Atlanta, Birmingham and Memphis, artists ranging from Duke Ellington to B.B. King to Sam Cooke performed for Black audiences in African American entertainment districts. The music emanating for generations out of these mostly Southern clubs reshaped American popular culture. And while the music lives on in many forms, the places are largely forgotten.
Ancestor Project honors lives of enslaved people at Louisiana plantation
The Evergreen Plantation in Edgard, Louisiana, is one of the most intact plantation sites in the South and has launched several research tools focused on the lives of enslaved people who lived and worked on the grounds. In honor of Black History Month, Evergreen is publishing an accompanying web series sharing some of these stories based on details collected from estate inventories, succession records, and sacramental records from the New Orleans Archdiocese.
- “My priority is for these stories to be told and to show the full scope of what their lives were like,” said Katy Morlas Shannon, the head of history and interpretation at Evergreen Plantation.
We promise, this will warm your heart
Alan Gilpatric is colorblind and has a hard time seeing certain colors. When he puts these glasses on, he'll see them for the first time. His reaction made me so happy. I laughed. I smiled. Enjoy!
