Researching American history can lead you into a pit of hopelessness, but choosing to acknowledge the atrocities and subjugation that Black people have endured can introduce strategies for coping and maneuvering through this world. Through working within the expanded field of photography, Harlan Bozeman uses the camera as a tool to recontextualize known and unknown Black legacies against his encounters working in the American South. In this talk, Bozeman will present his project based in Elaine, Arkansas, and other photo-based artworks that were created in response to his experience working in the Arkansas Delta. In addition to presenting artwork from two ongoing bodies of work, Bozeman will also explain his future plans of starting an archive alongside the community he works with.

Harlan Bozeman is a photo-based artist living in Central Arkansas. His research-driven practice focuses on the erasure of Black legacies in the American South and how this exploration influences one’s personhood. He earned his MFA in studio art from the University of Arkansas and a BA in journalism from DePaul University. His work has been exhibited nationally as well as published in the New York Times, British Journal of Photography, and the Atlantic.

SouthTalks is a series of events, including lectures, performances, film screenings and panel discussions, that explores the interdisciplinary nature of Southern Studies. This series is free and open to the public. Unless otherwise noted, events are set for Barnard Observatory’s Tupelo Room.