Rebekah Lee Fitting Wood, paint marker, wall spackle, nails and scrap paper
CITIZENS: RHETORIC, RESPONSE,
REPRESENTATION EXHIBIT OPENS AT PMA by Dakota Parks
rt has the power to connect, inspire and spark critical discourse through historical and social movements. When more than 20 classes at the University of West Florida set out on a common read of poet Claudia Rankine’s book Citizen: An American Lyric, students began responding to the work in a wide variety of mediums. More than 700 students and community members tuned in to Rankine’s virtual lecture and visit in February hosted by the UWF Downtown Lecture series. Rankine’s book intertwines poetry, lyrical essay and visual art to create a collective portrayal of racial relations in the U.S. and day-to-day microaggressions experienced by African Americans. The Citizens: Rhetoric, Response, Representation exhibit at the Pensacola Museum of Art (PMA) opens on April 17 and will display an interdisciplinary display of student responses. 12 | DOWNTOWNCROWD.COM
I think Rankine’s work is a really compelling study of the daily experiences of being an African American in this country and the sheer banality of racism that is constant.” “The common read of Citizen emerged as a response to the events of last summer,” Dr. Robin Blyn, English professor at The University of West Florida explained. “In particular, to the number of people out in the streets protesting the deaths of African Americans at the hands of police. There was an overwhelming sense that there were conversations that needed to be had about race. A lot of students at UWF wanted to talk about it and needed to talk about it. Artwork and literature both provide us with
the room to talk about things that we couldn’t otherwise talk about in depth without feeling threatened.” As Dr. Blyn explained, more than 20 classes collaborated at UWF from composition courses, creative writing, literature, feminist theory and several art classes such as 3D design and a BFA seminar course to read, teach and respond to Rankine’s book. The English Department collaborated with the Art Department to host an exhibit of student work at the PMA that
