VCU library features Smithsonian curator at annual Black History Month lecture

Mackenzie Meleski, Contributing Writer

VCU Libraries’ annual Black History Month lecture is a time for embracing diversity and inclusion and for celebrating the richness of Black culture, according to the VCU Libraries website.

The lecture series features prominent Black voices who encompass this mission, according to its website. This year, they invited Smithsonian curator Dwandalyn Reece.

The lecture took place at the James Cabell Library on Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. A reception preceded the event, offering attendees the chance to speak personally to Reece and receive a book signing.

Reece is curator of Music and Performing Arts at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. She recently curated the exhibition, Musical Crossroads, for the museum, according to the Smithsonian website. The exhibition tells the story of African Americans in music from when they first arrived in America to present day. 

Some of the items featured in the exhibition are Chuck Berry’s Cadillac, the personal hymnal of Harriet Tubman and costumes worn by musical icons throughout the 20th century, according to Reece. The items selected to be in the exhibit spanned multiple genres and generations.

Reece introduced many of the items during her lecture. She discussed the idea that these items started out as ordinary objects, but it was who owned them and what they did with them that made them special. Little details such as worn piano keys and Harriet Tubman’s handwritten name inside her hymnal give clues about how the owner used the item and how it was cherished, Reece said. 

“Music is life,” Reece said. “It surrounds us — it’s not just a culture or creative expression. It teaches us about ourselves and other people.”

Reece also wrote a book that gives additional information and photographs of the exhibition pieces also titled “Musical Crossroads,” according to an excerpt from Reece’s book.

Music plays a crucial role in Reece’s life, she said. Reece trained as a singer and studied music and history. She has worked at the Smithsonian for 14 years and previously worked at the Brooklyn Historical Society and the Motown Museum, according to Reece. The exhibition has been a work in progress for seven years.

“We create a narrative,” Reece said. “It’s a lot like writing a book. There’s a story and we want to tell people the story of music here.”

When selecting a speaker for the annual Black History Month lecture, VCU Dean of Libraries Irene Herold said the programming committee seeks lecturers who will inspire and intellectually engage students when selecting a speaker for the annual Black History Month lecture. 

“My hope is that students come to listen, reflect and perhaps see things differently as they go forward in their own intellectual journey,” Herold said. “It contributes to their academic success and helps them you know, be exposed to new concepts and ideas.”

Reece’s lecture focused on how African Americans have contributed to the music industry, according to Herold. She discusses music as a form of survival, expression and way of telling history. She also spoke about her own experience studying and working with music as a curator, Herold said.

“What I really love about her topic and her role, is it’s not just about musical sound, but it’s the whole gamut of music: the performance, the costume, instruments variety, and the culture around African American music. There’s a great heritage and legacy that they have,” Herold said.

This is the 23rd Black History Month lecture hosted by VCU Libraries, according to Sue Robinson Sain, VCU Libraries director of communications. However, it is the 20th year that VCU Libraries has hosted the event. Each year, the library board considers a new, unexplored topic that relates to Black History, according to Sain.

Among the board committee is Cornelia “Cam” Jones. The board helps promote library events and increase student engagement. This is Jones’ second term on the board. She said her favorite part of being a board member is hearing from voices like Reece.

“She was extremely well versed. I was lucky to get the book and look through it, the depth of knowledge and thirst to reveal the material with the understory. She showed us the underside,” Jones said.

Ryan Slaughter, lecture attendee and Richmond native, said he and his wife chose to attend the lecture after hearing about it from a family friend whose daughter attends VCU. They were most intrigued about the guitars and musical instruments included in the exhibit, according to Slaughter.

“I have always been a big history buff and have been to the Smithsonian’s history museum so many times,” Slaughter said. “Of course I was interested in hearing the lecture and now we’re definitely going to be visiting ‘Musical Crossroads.’”

The exhibition is currently open at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. The accompanying book will be released in early March, according to Herold. The book gives added insight to the items found in the exhibition, Herold said.

“She approaches the objects like biographies, and explores what is the story they have to tell. It’s so amazing that she helps us look at these artifacts through an African American historical lens,” Herold said.