Atlanta-based artist Nydia Blas was born and raised in Ithaca, part of a local community studded with names beloved locally and known nationwide, from her aunt Beverly J. Martin to Dorothy Cotton, Alex Haley, Cecil A. Malone, and Ruth Carol Taylor. Her exhibition at the Johnson Museum, “Love, You Came from Greatness” (August 19, 2023–January 7, 2024) is a new body of work portraying Black families in Ithaca and created in response to a collection of Black family albums held by Cornell University Library.
This talk was supported by gifts made in memory of Richard Sukenik ’59.