200 Years. 100 Artists. 1 Mississippi.

Presented by The Mississippi Art Museum

“‘Picturing Mississippi, 1817‒2017: Land of Plenty, Pain, and Promise’ follows the evolving story of Mississippi — first shown by foreign-born artists as a place of immense beauty and prosperity,” the museum tells us. “Later, they depicted it as a land laid waste by civil war, farmed by sharecroppers, held in check by segregation, and seared by the struggle for civil rights. They have ultimately shown it to be a place that has found an artistic voice of its own.

“The nineteenth century sections of the exhibition feature indigenous peoples, early portraits of the wealthy planter class; the Mississippi River’s role connecting North and South and linking East and West through its tributaries; the Civil War, and the effects of Reconstruction on the lives of African Americans.

“Art made about Mississippi’s people, places, and events offers a powerful lens through which to understand the state’s history; this visual narrative complements the artifacts and stories in the new Museum of Mississippi History.”

Find more information about “Picturing Mississippi” (on view through July 8, 2018) at the Mississippi Museum of Art here. 

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