New Exhibits Explore Cultural Diversity

Photo by Blake Little/Courtesy the James Museum

As they open their doors after nearly fi ve months, two museums bring forward new exhibits focusing on diverse voices and cultures. In Blake Little: Photographs from the Gay Rodeo, the James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art once again steps outside the box, this time with images exploring the complex nature of individual and community identities in American Western rural culture.

Blake Little: Photographs from the Gay Rodeo features 41 black and white images taken between 1988 and 1992. From broncobusting action shots to intimate views into the lives of rodeo participants, the exhibit invites an expansive redefi nition of cowboy identities.

“We are proud to host this exhibition celebrating diversity in the West,” said Emily Kapes, Curator at The James Museum. “With so many diff erent perspectives within the Western experience, we see this exhibition as an opportunity to feature the gay community, create dialogue, and inform museum visitors on these little-known competitions. The James Museum strives to be a welcoming and inspiring space for all and to amplify voices that are not often at the forefront of popular culture and mainstream Western art.” After getting hooked on going to rodeos, Blake Little wanted to become a part of the action. He learned to ride a steer, then a bull and slowly began to master the technique. In 1990 he was named Bull Riding Champion of the Year at the International Gay Rodeo Association. He says of the experience, “The sport, camaraderie, and atmosphere of this fi rst rodeo experience transformed me. I was completely drawn to it and I had to be a part of it. I wanted to be a cowboy.”

An overview of the special exhibition along with book and movie recommendations, art activities and more will be featured online as part of The James Museum from Home.

Blake Little: Photographs from the Gay Rodeo continues through January 31, 2021. For more information, call (727) 892-4200 or visit www.thejamesmuseum.org. Facial coverings are required for entry.

Floaters from Derrick Adams: Bouyancy

Courtesy St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts

At the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts, Derrick Adams: Buoyancy is a series of large-scale, vibrant paintings depicting relaxing at the pool. But what appears calm on the surface has undercurrents. Adams has observed that in art and in reality, images of Black people at play and simply enjoying life are not the norm. To fill this void, he created a painting and collage series titled Floaters between 2016–2019, where Black men, women and children lounged in or rested on novelty floaties in the pool.

He wanted to share these images with the world, and for Blacks to see themselves through a lens of freedom, fun, and leisure. In the exhibition, 12 of these mixed-media works come together in a colorful presentation in which Adams uses his art to reclaim and celebrate joy, pleasure, and respite for the Black image and spirit.

“We are honored to present these powerful works of art by Derrick Adams, who has grown as a revered and criticallyacclaimed artist in the contemporary art space in the past few years,” said Kristen Shepherd, the museum’s executive director and CEO. “The show is a true delight, and a real coup for the MFA and our community. We want our museum visitors to embrace these monumental paintings as the powerful, hopeful, and joyful images they are meant to be.”

Derrick Adams: Buoyant is organized by the Hudson River Museum in association with the MFA, St. Petersburg. The exhibit runs through November 29. For more information, go to mfastpete.org. Facial coverings are required to enter the museum.