Artwork display portrays influential African Americans in the Churches of Christ

Nov. 5, 2020 |

The Harding University Brackett Library is featuring an exhibit titled “Every Voice” through Friday, Nov. 20. The display is centered around an art piece, commissioned by Harding School of Theology in Memphis, that highlights seven influential African Americans who have made significant contributions to the Churches of Christ.

Artist Ella Kennin created the piece, titled “Every Voice: A Portrait of African American Churches of Christ in the Art,” in 2019 as a first-year student at the University of Memphis. In addition to Kennin’s work, the exhibit includes seven vertical panels positioned on the campus quadrangle outside the library entrance featuring each subject of the work and their biography. The individuals portrayed in the painting include:

• Fred Gray - an influential minister and civil rights attorney who represented Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr.
• Richard Nathaniel Hogan - a preacher and an editor of the Christian Echo who used his editorship to fight racism in the Churches of Christ
• George Philip Bowser - a prominent 20th century preacher
• Samuel Robert Cassius - a preacher and racial reformer
• Annie Clay Tuggle - a writer and educational advocate
• Marshall Keeble - one of the most prominent preachers among the Churches of Christ
• Sylvia Rose - an author, musician, songwriter and teacher (a 1977 Harding University graduate)

The exhibit will be on display from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Brackett Library until Nov. 20. For more information visit harding.edu/everyvoice .