Dr. Mark Anthony Neal joins three creatives to discuss what it means to be an independent black female artist in the Triangle as part of a year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of Duke's Department of African & African American Studies.
Candy Carver is a North Carolina Native that spend her formative years in Elkhart, IN, where she developed her abstract creativity. Working primarily with acrylic and various surfaces from canvas to vinyl, she creates vibrant, textured pieces that touch the soul and excite viewers. Her work can be found throughout the South Eastern States and continues to gain recognition. Carver contributes much of her inspiration to her own love for excitement, color and beauty found in the human form.
Currently serving as the Durham Art Guild’s board chair, Natasha is a passionate artist and illustrator who has been creating since early childhood. Originally from Richmond, VA, she now resides in the Raleigh-Durham area after relocating with her husband back in 2014. A large body of Natasha’s work focuses on the dichotomy women face between their personal and professional lives. Through her use of vibrant color, she tackles complex issues while still creating works of art that are aesthetically pleasing.
Natalie Bullock Brown is an award winning and Emmy nominated producer, and a Teaching Assistant Professor in Interdisciplinary Studies at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. She is director/producer of a work-in-progress tentatively titled baartman, beyoncé & me, a documentary that explores the impact of beauty ideals on black women and girls. Natalie is also a producer on award-winning filmmaker Byron Hurt’s upcoming PBS documentary, HAZING. Natalie regularly contributes to #BackChannel, a monthly segment on the North Carolina public radio program, The State of Things. For more than a decade, Natalie was assistant professor of film and broadcast media in the Department of Media & Communications at Saint Augustine’s University in Raleigh. She also served as cohost of Black Issues Forum, a public affairs program on UNC-TV, North Carolina’s statewide public television network. Natalie was also an associate producer on documentary filmmaker Ken Burns’ 10 part PBS series, Jazz. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Film Production from Howard University, and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Northwestern University.
Mark Anthony Neal is Chair of the Department of African & African American Studies and the founding director of the Center for Arts, Digital Culture and Entrepreneurship (CADCE) at Duke University where he offers courses on Black Masculinity, Popular Culture, and Digital Humanities, including signature courses on Michael Jackson & the Black Performance Tradition, and The History of Hip-Hop, which he co-teaches with Grammy Award Winning producer 9th Wonder (Patrick Douthit).
