AAMP in the News:

October 12, 2012, 4:19 pm — Reliving the Glamour of the Supremes

Bettmann/CorbisMary Wilson, left, and Cindy Birdsong of the Supremes with Princess Margaret in 1971.

MEMBERS may have come and gone during the original two-decade reign of the Supremes, but the sequins and bugle beads always remained the same.

“Glamour was our signature,” said Mary Wilson, a founding member of the group and, as its longest-running participant, the unofficial historian of the Supremes. “Even when we were 15 years old and auditioning for Motown Records, we were wearing pearls we bought from Woolworth. We were totally into dressing up.”

On Wednesday, the African American Museum in Philadelphia announced that it will present a collection of Supremes fashion and memorabilia beginning in January in an exhibition called “Come See About Me: The Mary Wilson Supremes Collection.” The show includes many gowns that Ms. Wilson has maintained or collected since the beginning of the group in 1959.

Ms. Wilson has long sought to protect the legacy of the group and to remind audiences of the significance of their breakthrough in music and on television. Fashion was an important part of that story. Dressing in glamorous gowns was a conscious decision, Ms. Wilson said, to portray themselves as women who had raised themselves from poor backgrounds and succeeded.

While many of their costumes were lost over the years, Ms. Wilson maintained a personal collection and said she acquired several pieces when they became available on eBay. The gowns, including the famous Bob Mackie designs and many by the costume designer Michael Travis, belonged to the group, so whenever a member (Florence Ballard, Diana Ross or Jean Terrell) would leave, she had to leave behind her dresses.

“Eventually I was the only one left, and that’s basically how I had the Supremes’ gowns,” Ms. Wilson said. “I put the old ones in a box.”

Some of them, beaded from head to toe with pearls and rhinestones, weighed around 30 pounds apiece. There was one set of pink dresses that members called their Queen Mother gowns after a performance in London, when, as Ms. Wilson recalled, they were introduced to Princess Margaret.

“She said, ‘Ooh, is that a wig you’re wearing?’ ” Ms. Wilson said. “And I recall that on the next day, there was a photograph on the cover of one of the newspapers where I was looking at Princess Margaret like I could kill her. It wasn’t what she said, it was the way she said it.”

As noted in her legal battles with Motown Records over the years, Ms. Wilson is very protective of the image of the Supremes. She believes many of their important costumes were lost when the company moved from Detroit to Los Angeles. But she holds out hope that she and those dresses someday will be together. Say, say, say it again, Ms. Wilson.

“And you should put this in bold print,” she said. “If anyone knows where they are, I want my gowns back.”

A version of this article appeared in print on 10/14/2012, on page ST4 of the NewYork edition with the headline: She’ll Bring the Sequins.

http://runway.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/12/reliving-the-glamour-of-the-supremes/

Museum show here on Supremes' dresses, times

Those who loved the look of the fashionable trio, whose original members were Diana Ross, Florence Ballard, and Mary Wilson, will be delighted about Wednesday's announcement by the African American Museum in Philadelphia.

Elizabeth Wellington, Fashion Columnist

Posted: Wednesday, October 10, 2012, 7:11 AM

The beaded gowns, feathered shifts, and sleek jumpsuits donned by Motown sensations the Supremes were almost as phenomenal - if not more so - than the group's string of hits such as "Stop! In the Name of Love," and "You Can't Hurry Love."

So those who loved the look of the fashionable trio, whose original members were Diana Ross, Florence Ballard, and Mary Wilson, will be delighted about Wednesday's announcement by the African American Museum in Philadelphia.

Wilson is in town this afternoon to promote the forthcoming fashion exhibition: Come See About Me: The Mary Wilson Supremes Collection, set to open Jan. 25. It will feature more than 30 dresses courtesy of Wilson, the unofficial keeper of the historical and sparkling treasure trove.

This is not the first time the dresses have been on display. They were featured at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland in 2004, and the exhibition has traveled to several other museums in the United States and England.

"It's like reliving history," Wilson said. "It's about three little black girls making their dreams come true. So I get excited every time they go out, like when I go out on stage."

The Philadelphia version of the exhibition will display video footage, gold records, album covers, historic photographs, and news stories from the group's heyday that spanned 1959 to 1977, through the civil rights movement, the fight for women's equality, and the Vietnam War.

"It is about more than sequins and boas," explained Patricia Wilson Aden, senior vice president of the African American Museum.

"It's about the Supremes in their various roles. We are going to talk about women's empowerment, self-esteem, and self-development. It explores Mary Wilson's personal journey."

In the early days, when they were living in the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects in Detroit, the singers purchased gowns off the rack and embellished them.

As they started to earn more money, they began shopping at department stores like Jacobson's. Come See About Me includes a white satin gown with beaded bodice and matching jacket from Jacobson's that the group wore on The Hollywood Palace on TV.

Eventually, when they reached celebrity status, top designers including Bob Mackie and Michael Travis would be commissioned to design their gowns.

One of the gems of the exhibition includes the "Black Butterfly" by Mackie, a velvet gown with heavily beaded sleeves the women wore when they performed with the Temptations in the 1969 G.I.T. on Broadway television special.

The exhibition also includes a handful of gowns the group wore on The Ed Sullivan Show. One of Wilson's favorites is a hot-pink chiffon gown with rhinestone neckline called "Sullivan's Delight."

There's also an emerald green full-length gown with an empire waist that Wilson wore while performing in the mid-'70s - when she was pregnant. At the time, that was a bold style move; when women in the public eye were expecting, they disappeared until they had their babies and slimmed down.

"That was so rare at the time," Aden said. "They were breaking barriers for women."

Wilson eventually inherited the dresses, as each departing member handed over their gowns to her.

But the gowns weren't retired. They were altered to fit the additional members, including Cindy Birdsong, Jean Terrell, Scherrie Payne, and Susaye Green. (Long before social media mayhem and glossy magazines, groups would perform in the same outfits over and over again.)

"I didn't create it, it kind of fell in my lap," Wilson said, referring to the dress collection. "It was amazing after everyone had gone, I was the only one there, and I had all these gowns."

Come See About Me will be curated by Duke University African American studies professor Mark Anthony Neal. Neal, a well-known commentator on black pop culture and lifestyle issues, was in town Monday to begin work curating the exhibition, which will be organized around themes of breaking racial and gender barriers.

After all, before there was Destiny's Child, it was the Supremes that delivered the first images of feminine and elegant African American women, a deliberate plan by Motown president Berry Gordy and the label's stylist, Maxine Powell.

"They were the first 'around the way girls,' " Neal said, referring to LL Cool J's name for the girl-next-door. "Their glamour was accessible in a way Marilyn Monroe's glamour wasn't because they grew up hardscrabble in the Detroit projects. They were the American dream."

http://www.philly.com/philly/style/20121010_Museum_show_here_on_Supremes__dresses__times.html

Rosa Parks' Congressional Gold Medal goes on display at African American Museum

August 01, 2012 | By Vernon Clark, Inquirer Staff Writer

With the presentation of a small blue box, the African American Museum in Philadelphia received a giant national treasure Tuesday as it was lent the Congressional Gold Medal bestowed on Rosa Parks, known as the mother of the modern civil rights movement.

"We could not be more honored than to have this piece of history here with us at our own African American Museum in Philadelphia," Mayor Nutter said of the medal, the highest civilian award bestowed by Congress. It was given to Parks in 1999.

In a brief ceremony, Curtis Dean, former general manager of the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, lent the medal to the museum to augment an exhibit of portraits of civil rights pioneers.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-08-01/news/32982048_1_civil-rights-montgomery-bus-boycott-romona-riscoe-benson

Former Freedom Riders remember the struggles

July 22, 2012 | By Kristin E. Holmes, Inquirer Staff Writer

The anger that led Lewis Zuchman and Luvaghn Brown to self-destructive moments as teenagers ultimately fueled their dedication to a movement.

Zuchman grew up white and Jewish in New York. He quit college and served time in jail before he was 19. Brown, an African American in segregated Mississippi, ran away from an abusive family life and was prone to raise his fists in an instant.

They met as teenage Freedom Riders in the early 1960s, part of a historic nonviolent movement that helped force the desegregation of transportation services in the South.

"It was a reasonable way to fight what I wanted to fight all along but didn't know how," said Brown, now 67.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-07-22/news/32789114_1_freedom-rides-segregation-transportation-services

2 Summer Events You Need To See In Philly. SEE THE EXCLUSIVE VIDEO

When you visit a hot spot nicknamed the “City of Brotherly Love” you better be prepared to mingle. Thankfully, when you spend any amount of time in Philadelphia, PA, there are no shortage of opportunities to expand yourself culturally while having fun.

In the next installment of “Summertime Remixed,” we visit the Global Fusion Festival at Penn’s Landing and “RAAMP It Up Wednesdays” at The African American Museum in Philadelphia.

Global Fusion is over now, but WE ARE STILL GOING STRONG!

http://theurbandaily.com/1932516/global-fusion-festival-philly/

African American Museum in Philadelphia Appoints New Director of Development

The African American Museum in Philadelphia is proud to announce the appointment of Tamika Peay, as its new Director of Development. Ms. Peay brings over 13 years of experience in development and fundraising expertise to the Museum. She served as the Executive Director for a national cancer education and prevention organization in West Palm Beach, FL. During her tenure as Executive Director, Peay tripled the organization’s assets within a seven year period and increased event participation by over 30%. She was one of the lead grant writers to receive a $1.5 million grant from the National Institute of Health. Additionally, Ms. Peay raised over $3 million through grants, sponsorships, special events, and special fundraising campaigns to support various mission-focused needs. Tamika also has extensive marketing and public relations experience, developing campaigns to inform the community about scientific advances in medical research. In a previous role, she also served as lead educator for a 5-year longitudinal study for the National Institute of Health.

In her new position, Ms. Peay will lead AAMP’s Development Department, establishing a comprehensive plan to meet the institution’s goals. Her duties will include management of fundraising campaigns, oversight of proposals for major gifts, support requests for individual and planned gifts, grant writing and oversight of the Museum’s membership program. Tamika reports to AAMP’s President and CEO, Romona Riscoe Benson and will work closely with the organization’s Board of Directors.

Tamika can be reached at: tpeay@aampmuseum.org or 215.574.0380, ext. 246.

Iconic Images Mural Collection Wins Two MUSE Awards!

The African American Museum in Philadelphia is pleased to announce we are a recipient of two 2012 MUSE Awards!

Now in its 23rd year, the MUSE awards competition recognizes outstanding achievement in museum media. The competition is an activity of the Media & Technology Standing Professional Committee of the American Association of Museums.

Audio Tours & Podcasts
Gold
Albert M. Greenfield African American Iconic Images Audio Tour,

African American Museum in Philadelphia in partnership with the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program
Acoustiguide, Inc.

Online Presence
Silver
Albert M. Greenfield African American Iconic Images Website,

African American Museum in Philadelphia in partnership with the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program
Bluecadet

We are thankful for the hard work and technical production provided by Acoustiguide, Inc. and Bluecadet, for the knowledge and comments of our project Advisory Committee, the partnership of The City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, and the support of the Albert M. Greenfield Foundation and PNC Arts Alive!

Click here to learn more about the Albert M. Greenfield African American Iconic Images Collection.

Lokadot Announces Philadelphia Arts and Cultural Organizations Embracing Its Location-based Audio Platform for Smartphones

Philadelphia, PA - July 27, 2012 -

Lokadot, LLC, creators of “Lokadot” - the location-based audio platform for smartphones - announced today five distinguished Philadelphia arts and cultural organizations who will be implementing Lokadot this September 2012.

Lokadot founder and CEO Cliff Stevens said “We’re absolutely thrilled with the responses we’ve received. The word is spreading, and these organizations absolutely “get” what we’re doing.” The five organizations selected to participate in the Lokadot implementation pilot program are: The African American Museum in Philadelphia, The Franklin Institute, The Library Company, Philadelphia Art Alliance, and Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens.

Using Lokadot’s technology, organizations can publish geo-tagged audio that smartphone owners hear via the free Lokadot app for iPhone, or by accessing Lokadot’s mobile-Web app which can be branded for each organization. With Lokadot, visitors who are on-site, as well as others who are passing by or even those who are far away, can hear about an organization’s points of interest, their object collections, or anything else of significance to a location. By streaming geo-tagged audio from the Internet to gps-enabled smartphones, arts and cultural organizations now have access to a cutting-edge interpretive tool unlike anything else. And, they can focus on what they do best - developing content that is engaging, informative and entertaining - rather than building and maintaining technology. “

One of the most exhilarating things I kept hearing from the organizations I interviewed was how they’ve been dreaming of something like this to be invented,” Stevens pointed out. “For the first time, organizations can leverage both the rapid adoption of smartphone technology and the emotional power of audio to share their unique stories, in the context of their locations, but without being confined to their locations.”

Romona Riscoe Benson, President and CEO, African American Museum in Philadelphia said, “We are so excited to be a part of this endeavor. Located as we are near Philadelphia’s Historic District, Chinatown, and hubs of business and transportation in the city, this is an opportunity to throw open our virtual doors – and hopefully then our physical doors – to the many people this application has the potential to reach.”

“Collaborating with Lokadot is an ideal way to utilize advanced smartphone technology to engage both on-site and potentially untapped visitors, providing them with useful information in a timely, entertaining and appealing manner,” said Troy Collins, Senior Vice President of Programs, Marketing and Business Development at The Franklin Institute. “We are thrilled to be among the organizations involved, and look forward to a successful launch this coming September.”

“We are thrilled with the prospect of sharing the information in our collections in this new way,” says Library Company Director John Van Horne. “Audio presentations will enrich the Library Company experience by allowing our curators to speak directly to visitors about what they’re seeing in our cases and on our walls, and at the same time to create archives of recordings on a range of historical subjects that can be accessed on demand.” The Library Company is the nation’s oldest cultural institution—founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1731—and one of the largest repositories of early American imprints in the world.

“We are delighted to join Lokadot’s pilot program,” says Philadelphia Art Alliance’s Executive Director Molly Dougherty. “Using information that already exists about our historic building and exhibition program, we are creating user-friendly audio content. Our Lokadot participation is allowing this small organization to stretch beyond its current capacity to provide audio tours for visitors.”

Ellen Owens, Executive Director of Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens added, “With so much foot traffic passing by Philadelphia's Magic Gardens during the evening hours, Lokadot offers an incredible way to provide interpretation of our unique site for thousands of people who walk by on South Street - even when our organization is closed! We're also extremely excited about being able to utilize the voice of our founder, Isaiah Zagar, in our forthcoming audio content where he’ll be sharing some of the rich stories about his artwork.”

One of the many alluring differentiators about Lokadot’s breakthrough location-based audio-streaming technology is its ability to integrate seamlessly with the listener’s existing iTunes music that is playing on their iPhone. Using this optional Auto-Play feature, whenever a user gets near a point of interest, their music fades down and pauses while the Lokadot “point of interest” audio plays from the Web. When the Lokadot audio finishes, the listener’s original music continues.

Organizations who are interested in implementing Lokadot and publishing their own geo-tagged audio to Lokadot’s location-based audio platform for smartphones can sign up here: http://bit.ly/publkt

About Lokadot

Lokadot, LLC ( http://lokadot.com ) is a Philadelphia, PA-based mobile software technology company that enables businesses to engage customers with location-based audio on smartphones, the mobile Web and eventually Internet Radio. Lokadot's easy-to-use location-based audio platform for smartphones is perfect for non-commercial entities and artists too, and provides them with a creative, effective way to emotionally engage, inform and grow their constituencies, i.e., museums, arts/cultural and historical organizations, convention and tourist bureaus, galleries and exhibitions, parks and universities.

NOTE: Lokadot is pronounced "low" + "kuh" + "dote" (as in "local" + "anecdote").

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