UpDate - Vol. 15, No. 26, Page 9
April 4, 1996
Art show, panel part of 20th anniversary events

     Internationally acclaimed African-American artists will be at the
University on Wednesday, April 10, for an art show and discussion on
"The Value of African-American Art in Our Community."
     Featured artists will be Brenda Joysmith, Samuel Byrd and Cal
Massey.
     Planned as part of the 20th anniversary of the Center for Black
Culture, the show and panel discussion with the artists will be held
from 5-8 p.m. in Clayton Hall. Admission to the show and panel
discussion is free.

Samuel Byrd
     Byrd, of Philadelphia, has gained critical acclaim for his
paintings of women and the symbolic use of the rose, which has become
his trademark. Byrd's primary media include acrylics, color pencils
and graphite, and he is known for his depiction of the tender,
innocent and emotional side of children, women and the elderly.
     A renowned portrait painter, his subjects have included
Philadelphia Mayor Wilson Goode, Teddy Pendergrass, astronaut Guion
Bluford and Bill Cosby. His three-story mural of Patti Labelle was
commissioned by the city of Philadelphia. He has illustrated eight
children's books and has had his work displayed on the sets of the The
Cosby Show and other television shows. He has exhibited throughout the
United States and Europe, and his works can be found in a number of
galleries in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.

Brenda Joysmith
     Artist and businesswoman Joysmith depicts "African Americans in
everyday settings." She began her training in 1968 at the Art
Institute of Chicago, and today her works are in the collections of
numerous celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey and Roberta Flack.
     "I'm usually interested in reminding people of something they
already know that challenges stereotypes," she told the Kansas City
Star. "A lot of my things ...focus on black males. As opposed to the
characterizations that you would experience in the media, I try and
put them in community settings. I am kind of preoccupied with
observing the ordinary and presenting it in a way that people will
relate to it and say, 'Oh, yeah.'"
     With poet Nikki Giovanni, who is a featured speaker during the
20th anniversary celebration, Joysmith published From a Child's Heart.
Her work has appeared on the sets of many popular television shows and
in the movies Philadelphia and Ghost Day, among others. Her business,
Joysmith Studio, publishes and supplies her artwork to galleries and
shops nationwide.

Cal Massey
     Painter, sculptor and designer Massey of Moorestown, N.J., is a
graduate of the Hussian School, and he later joined the faculty there
for three years. His numerous accomplishments over the years have
included illustration work for the Saturday Evening Post and many
major book publishers. His design and sculpture work for the Franklin
Mint includes a medal of MacArthur, the first medallion struck for the
mint's National Commemorative Society, 50 medallions for the Madison
Collection and nine medallions commemorating the 1996 Olympics. Massey
has exhibited in many shows and has sold paintings to numerous private
collectors.


For more information about the art show or other events planned for
the anniversary celebration, call UD1-HENS or the Center for Black
Culture at 831-2991.
                                                          -Gerry Elter