We Who Are Dark

In this episode, Professor Tomengo and Dr. Vaz continue their conversation on the artwork of Augusta Savage, this time giving specific attention to her sculpture Realization. They discuss the importance of her approach to portraying Black people during the Harlem Renaissance and how that approach differed from that of Aaron Douglas.

In this episode, Professor Tomengo and Dr. Vaz discuss the life and art of American sculptor Augusta Savage. The conversation centers on Savage's approach to creating sculptures of Black people and her life in the art world of the early 20th Century. Considerable attention is given to her activism, including her discontent with Mary Brady of The Harmon Foundation.

In this episode, Dr. Vaz and Professor Tomengo engage in a conversation about the British role in the founding of the United States of America. Key to this discussion are the differences between the British approach to mercantalism and slave-owning and that of the Spanish and the Portuguese. These differences, ultimately, will determine why and how the concept of "race" developed and was enforced in the nascent American psyche.

This episode features a detailed discussion of why the Transatlantic Slave Trade developed and how its development slowly decimated local West African economies. Dr. Vaz revisits the topic of European mercantilism, underscoring how initial trade agreements with West Africa led to the eventual fall of some West African kingdoms and the rise of others. Key to the discussion is how these newer kingdoms were founded specifically for the implementation and propagation of the Transatlantic Slave Trade itself.

In this episode, Dr. Neil Vaz and Professor Trent Tomengo discuss Aaron Douglas's painting Aspirations from 1936. They analyze Douglas's painting, giving special attention to the war of images that was waged against the proliferation of harmful stereotypes aimed at the Black population. The conversation includes a discussion on the origins of the NAACP and the efficacy of its work, primarily through its Legal Defense Fund.

Dr. Vaz and Professor Tomengo conclude their conversation on Aaron Douglas's seminal series Aspects of Negro Life, addressing the final painting in the series, Song of the Towers. They cover issues related to the Great Migration, the Harlem Renaissance, and the labor movment of the United States at time, giving special attention to the presidential administrations of Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. They discuss, among other topics, how those administrations shaped race relations in our country.

This episode continues Dr. Vaz and Professor Tomengo's conversation on Aaron Douglas's Aspects of Negro Life, this time focusing on the third painting in the series, From Slavery to Reconstruction. The conversation includes a discussion of the era of Reconstruction along with the Great Migration and the challenges and opportunities Black people faced at the turn of the 20th century.

Dr. Neil Vaz and Professor Trent Tomengo continue their discussion of Aaron Douglas's "Aspects of Negro Life", this time taking a deep dive into "Idyll of the Deep South". They discuss the ideas inherent in its imagery and asthetics and how these ideas are reflected in the writings of scholars like Robert Farris Thompson and Eric Williams.

In this episode, Dr. Neil Vaz and Professor Trent Tomengo discuss the artist Aaron Douglas and his series of paintings called "Aspects of Negro Life", particularly "The Negro in an African Setting". The conversation includes general information about the Harlem Renaissance, the historical/cultural importance of Douglas's art, and its relevance for the time period and for today.

Dr. Neil Vaz and Professor Trent Tomengo discuss the self-emancipation of Africans throughout the African Diaspora focusing on self-emancipation during the Civil War, the creation of independent Maroon nations throughout the Americas, as well as the Haitian Revolution. They delve into the importance of agency in bringing about change in the historical narrative, challenging the recent push to hide that history.