Arlene Keizer, an Afro-Caribbean American poet and scholar, will deliver a reading and presentation on her newly published poetry collection Fraternal Light, On Painting While Black: Poems for Beauford Delaney. Winner of the 2022 Stan and Tom Wick Poetry Prize, Fraternal Light is a lyrical work that honors the legacy of Beauford Delaney (1901-1979), an African American painter whose work examined the diasporic experience and cultural circles of New York City, as well as the Parisian avant-garde and expatriate enclaves following his move to Paris in the 1950s. While his work only received widely recognized acclaim posthumously, Delaney established himself as a well-known figure of the bohemian art scene in Greenwich Village from the 1930s through the early 1950s. During this time, he worked as a guard, telephone operator, and gallery attendant at the Whitney Museum of American Art, then located on 8th Street in a building today occupied by the New York Studio School.
Given the interconnected history between Delaney and the New York Studio School’s site, Keizer’s presentation promises to be a powerful experience for all in attendance. Keizer is a professor at Pratt Institute, whose work examines the lived experience, literature, and visual culture of the African diaspora.