Urban Newsletter Art Piece (page 1)
Date
Credits
- Dana C. Chandler Jr. 6 Archivist
Format
- Newspaper 1279
- Archive 169
- Booklet 117
- Collage 30
- Typography 83
- Archive/Collection 21
- Newsletter 31
Dimensions
Locations Made
- United States 1032
- Boston 70
- Massachusetts 59
Dana C. Chandler's Urban Newsletter Art Piece is not only a collection and archive of African American Master Artists-in Residency Program (AAMARP) history but also a curated act of resistance and activism. He created the document (totaling twenty-five double-sided pages) in 1993, in direct response to Northeastern University provost Michael Baer's announcement of an extreme 75% cut to the AAMARP program budget, as well as Chandler's dismissal as AAMARP director. Each page is a photocopied collage of various AAMARP documents, Chandler's personal annotations, and/or news clippings that function as evidence of contradicting establishment statements. In addition to Northeastern-specific content, he includes coverage of police brutality and protests to highlight historic and widespread institutional oppression. By juxtaposing such excerpts against AAMARP ephemera exemplifying perseverance through collective labor and activism, Chandler critiques both local and systemic institutional narratives, oppression, and neglect, and calls on viewers to do the same. Taking the work a step beyond conceptual critique, he amplified his message and raised awareness by personally distributing copies throughout the community.
This first page functions as a flyer, welcoming recipients to a final open house before the forced cessation of all AAMARP activities. Simultaneously, it highlights key phrases challenging the decisions that made the event necessary. While the largest headlines on the page outline basic time and location information, smaller snippets of text are underlined or set vertically, drawing attention to phrases such as “who lied?” and “You and yours get nothing!”
