Exhibition Labels
Sanborn House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Griffin is so happy to be showing in such a unique and storied space. However, historical buildings require certain museum specifications, and we cannot affix any labels to the wall. Instead, you can read about Alanna’s individual works below.
Introduction
Challenging the norms of portraiture, Alanna Airitam (b. 1971) weaves historical references and contemporary themes into her captivating compositions. In this series, The Golden Age from 2017, Airitam illuminates marginalized faces and untold stories, utilizing familiar imagery from the Dutch Golden Age in service of asking larger questions. Many of the works’ titles refer to the places and players of the Harlem Renaissance. In The Golden Age, Airitam connects a tale of two cities over centuries, reuniting Old and New Amsterdam – Haarlem and Harlem. Against opulent backgrounds and adorned in regal attire, her subjects radiate an unwavering majesty, confronting biases and addressing racial gaps in traditional art-historical representation. Through light and shadow, Airitam accentuates the multifaceted nature of her subjects, revealing emotional and psychological depths. They declare their agency and resilience, shining a light on stories that have been obscured for far too long.
The Griffin Museum of Photography is pleased to host The Golden Age in the Sanborn House during our summer renovation. Placed in conversation with the Sanborn House environment, The Golden Age urges viewers to place a contemporary lens on curated pasts. Built in 1907 by Oren Sanborn, son of James Solomon Sanborn, the house stands as a testament to the family’s wealth derived from their coffee roasting business. Chase & Sanborn Coffee secured the Sanborns’ fortune by pioneering the roasting, grinding, and shipping of coffee in aluminum tins. Established in 1864 prior to abolition, the extent of the kinds of labor the company used remains unclear. By engaging with Airitam’s powerful imagery, we are invited not only to question whose faces are most commonly seen on museum walls but are also challenged to conceive of the darker histories of American racial relations. In capturing the faces of her friends and loved ones, Airitam urges us to bridge the gap between past and present and foster a deeper understanding of our collective history, reimagining our world through her lens.
“Through The Golden Age, I strive to reclaim the narrative, challenge the existing power structures, and shed light on the richness of Black culture.” –Alanna Airitam
Alanna Airitam, Saint Strivers, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Strivers Row, also known as “Doctor’s Row” or “Abyssinia Row,” is a historic residential street located in Harlem, New York City. Built in the early 20th century, it was a symbol of achievement and upward mobility for Black Americans during a time of racial segregation. The row consists of elegant, townhouse-style homes that were designed and occupied by successful Black professionals, including doctors, lawyers, and business owners. It was also a major hub for musicians: From Bojangles to Fletcher Henderson to W.C. Handy, Strivers’ Row has been home to musical artists as much as it’s been mentioned by them. Strivers Row served as a testament to the resilience and determination of Black individuals striving for excellence and creating a vibrant community in the face of adversity. Today, it stands as a significant landmark representing Harlem’s rich cultural and historical heritage.
Paired in Airitam’s composition with an elegant arrangement of peonies, Saint Strivers connects Dutch Golden Age bounty to Harlem’s rich history. While lush bouquets in Dutch Renaissance works represented mercantile prowess, Airitam celebrates artistic achievement in her own community.
Alanna Airitam, Saint Lenox, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Playing on the abbreviation of Saint, “St.,” Airitam cleverly references street names in the Harlem neighborhood throughout The Golden Age. In this way, Alanna’s “Saints” call into question the canon of the church, in addition to the canon of Art History–a very European and primarily white discipline. Saints, often the subject of Baroque period paintings, instead are transformed into homages to historical Black artistry. Lenox Avenue, referenced in this work, was once dubbed “Harlem’s Heartbeat” by Harlem Renaissance poet, Langston Hughes, in his work, Juke Box Love Song (1925).
I could take the Harlem night
and wrap around you,
Take the neon lights and make a crown,
Take the Lenox Avenue busses,
Taxis, subways,
And for your love song tone their rumble down.
Take Harlem’s heartbeat,
Make a drumbeat,
Put it on a record, let it whirl,
And while we listen to it play,
Dance with you till day—
Dance with you, my sweet brown Harlem girl.
-Langston Hughes
Alanna Airitam, Dapper Dan, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Deep rich tones, dramatic lighting, and the subject’s direct gaze invite the viewer into Airtam’s world. For this piece, the artist invited her colleague to pose as Dapper Dan, a Harlem-based fashion designer and haberdasher. A vanguard of streetwear, Dapper Dan (b. Daniel Day, 1944) has pioneered the collision between Hip Hop and high fashion, collaborating with brands such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Fendi and opening multiple ateliers throughout the Harlem neighborhood. Airtam’s title therefore incorporates fashion into her messaging, calling attention to another art form the Black community has deeply advanced. Airtam’s choice to work with her peer as her sitter connects the Harlem Renaissance with present-day artistic valor in the Black community, all-while calling out the ubiquity of whiteness in European museums.
“Art is powerful and can move people. I use photography as my medium to share stories and generate action — and most specifically to empower and remind people of who they really are, despite how history or the media may omit, skew or manipulate our stories to form false narratives about our humanity.” – Alanna Airitam
Alanna Airitam, Saint Abyssinian, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Titularly referenced in this image, the Abyssinian Baptist Church is a primarily Black church that was established in the Harlem neighborhood in 1808. The church was founded by a group of Black freedmen who left the First Baptist Church in protest of its racially segregated seating. Airitam, in her fully-black Golden Age, perhaps nods to this, alluding to a long history of creating solely Black safe spaces for one’s community.
The church was also an important site for religious music during the Harlem Renaissance and remains a center of the Harlem gospel tradition. Among many important events, the church conducted the wedding of Nat King Cole and his wife, as well as the funeral of “The Father of Blues” WC Handy in 1958.
Alanna Airitam, Saint Madison, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Like many of its peer works in The Golden Age, Saint Madison refers to a street in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan. Stretching from 138th to 24th, Madison Ave is an artery of the city, with its origin up north in Harlem.
Madison Avenue is named for James Madison, the fourth president of the United States. Saint Madison perhaps takes on a more solemn reading when we consider that the president for whom the street is named owned over 100 enslaved individuals in his lifetime. Although we do not have records from the early days of the Sanborns’ fortune, their involvement in the coffee industry leaves many questions unanswered in regards to labor. Instead, we are urged to consider who holds the majority of financial power in our country, often at the expense of others.
While looking at this piece, gaze into the sitter’s eyes. How often do you see someone who looks like her on the walls of a place like Sanborn House or even the White House? Airitam’s work calls attention to the erasure of these stories and offers us a powerful correction. How can we carry this correction forward?
Alanna Airitam, Saint Minton, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Minton’s Playhouse, located in Harlem, New York City, is a legendary jazz club that played a pivotal role in the development of the genre. Founded in 1938 by Henry Minton, it became a thriving hub for Black musicians and a hotbed of innovation. Minton was the first-ever Black delegate to the American Federation of Musicians, making the site significant to labor history as well. Minton’s Playhouse is credited with being the birthplace of bebop, a groundbreaking style of jazz that revolutionized the music industry. Iconic jazz artists such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Louis Armstrong graced the stage, pushing the boundaries of jazz and inspiring future generations of musicians. Today, Minton’s Playhouse continues to celebrate its rich legacy by showcasing live jazz performances and preserving the spirit of this historic venue.
Alanna Airitam, Saint Monroe, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Alongside Minton’s Playhouse, Clark Monroe’s Uptown House, situated in Harlem, New York City, was one of the most prominent jazz venues in the 1940s. Founded by Clark Monroe, the Uptown House became a gathering place for both established and emerging African American jazz musicians. It provided a platform for performers such as Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Charlie Parker to showcase their talents in an intimate and lively setting. The club’s cozy atmosphere and enthusiastic audience made it a beloved institution, contributing to the rich cultural heritage of Harlem and leaving an indelible mark on the history of jazz.
Alanna Airitam, Saint Nicholas, 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
St. Nicholas Avenue was a vital hub during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s. The iconic Savoy Ballroom on St. Nicholas Avenue’s corner with 141st Street was renowned for swing music and the Lindy Hop dance. The Renaissance Casino and Ballroom, located at 138th Street, also attracted prominent musicians. St. Nicholas Avenue’s vibrant street life and cultural richness inspired writers and artists, making it a significant center for African American arts and culture during the Harlem Renaissance.
Alanna Airitam, Queen Mary (The Queen), 2017, Archival Pigment Print, Hand Finished with Varnish
Encircled in a wreath of opulent blooms, Queen Mary stands centrally as the culminating piece of The Golden Age series. Such floral arrangements, common in Baroque Dutch still lifes, were historically meant to reference wealth and bounty, acquired through trade and mercantile reach. Airitam flips such symbolism on its head; non-European flowers in Golden Age paintings were meant to allude to Dutch globality and imperial prowess, whereas Alanna’s non-European sitter subverts colonial themes and instead suggests a narrative of Black power and artistry.
Queen Mary asserts herself proudly, presenting her viewer with the key to all of the abundance and joy seen throughout Airitam’s utopia.
“When exhibited, Queen Mary is often shown last because once you receive all the offerings from all the other portraits, you’ll find her holding a key. This is the key to all you are being offered – the abundance, wealth, love, beauty, creativity, joy, life … she is saying you already have the key to all of this inside you. You do not need to look externally for any of this. You are already all of this and more. She is a reflection of you. And I hope all who see her can see themselves in her.” –Alanna Airitam
Artist Statement – Alanna Airitam
“The Golden Age was created in 2017 to address the invisibility and omission of Black voices from the annals of art history and the revisions of American history. I am driven by a desire to confront the stories and histories of Black people that have been glaringly omitted from Western Art History. Black history has long been held hostage by whiteness, resulting in a predominantly subjugated portrayal of Black individuals throughout art history. This perpetuates the false narrative that Blackness has always been synonymous with servitude. It is this great lie that I feel compelled to address in my work.
Weary of witnessing the mistreatment of Black people, I needed to see a more truthful version of ourselves represented in a way that balanced out the monotonous, negative stereotypes we are subjected to in the media. This made me pause to try and recall a time in our collective history where Black people had fair and balanced visual representation. This historical meandering took me to The Harlem Renaissance which stands as our age of enlightenment and a great time of Black innovation, creativity, and cultural significance. Born out of the Great Migration and a response to escaping the Jim Crow south, the Harlem Renaissance parallels the Dutch Renaissance that emerged in Haarlem, Netherlands during the Eighty Years’ War. Both periods ushered in the beginnings of modernity and a hope for a more progressive society.
In The Golden Age, I have invited friends, who happen to be artists, writers, and scholars, to sit for me. They represent the community I would have had during the Harlem Renaissance, had we been alive during that time. Their identification as creators was not a requirement but a reflection of the people in my life.
To create dramatic and contemporary portraits, I employ Rembrandt-style lighting, drawing inspiration from both the 17th-century Renaissance paintings and my limited resources as a self taught photographer. Embracing my limited equipment and no budget, I posed the sitters using one key light with a bounce or low fill light. I draped fabric remnants on each model along with personal pieces to create the wardrobe. By naming the portraits in my series as saints, coupled with street names or landmarks from Harlem, I seek to commemorate the significance of this time amidst the ongoing gentrification (e.g., Saint Sugar Hill, Saint Madison, Saint Monroe). The prints are varnished to add to mimic a painting, provide texture, and to seal and protect the print.
Through The Golden Age, I strive to reclaim the narrative, challenge the existing power structures, and shed light on the richness of Black culture. By intertwining historical and contemporary elements, I hope to foster a greater understanding and appreciation for the
contributions of Black people throughout history. This project is not just a reflection of my personal journey but also an invitation to reevaluate the stories we tell and the narratives we choose to perpetuate.”
About the Artist
Alanna Airitam is a photographer whose work transcends traditional boundaries, incorporating elements of other materials such as metal, resin, varnish, and gold leaf into her captivating compositions. With a focus on lighting, staging, and processes referencing particular eras in art history, her portraits and still lifes often takes on a painterly quality that invites viewers to explore hidden histories and stories that have led to a lack of fair and honest representation of Black Americans.
Driven by a relentless pursuit of truth, Airitam delves into the complexities of storytelling and the subjective and indefinite nature of truth. Through the lens of photography, she seeks to unravel the secrets of the past, drawing upon the belief that a photograph is proof of existence, the closest thing to an irrefutable truth. Her work challenges preconceived notions through the incorporation of both digital and film processes, as well as the manipulation and construction of images, offering a fresh perspective on the nature of truth itself.
Influenced by the power and beauty of Black people, the strength and creativity of women, and the dream of a world where individuals are free to shape their own lives without interference, Airitam finds inspiration in the syncopation of jazz and transportive nature of music, the art of storytelling, and the endless possibility of the human spirit. Her work also draws from the colors, lighting, and scale of 17th-century Renaissance paintings, as well as the legacy of Black studio photographers from the 19th century.
With a three-tiered approach to their audience, Airitam creates art first and foremost for herself, seeking personal fulfillment and self-expression. She also aims to connect with other People of Color, particularly Black women, sharing stories of resilience, creativity, and the contributions of Black people to American culture. Lastly, she strives to engage with a broader audience, encouraging them to see the positive potential for human existence, to recognize beauty, and to embrace love.
Airitam’s work has garnered recognition and acclaim, with exhibitions at esteemed institutions such as the Center for Creative Photography, the New Orleans Museum of Art, and the Rhode Island School of Design Museum. She has also showcased her art at prominent art fairs, while her work has been collected by institutions and individuals and displayed in galleries across the United States.
Believing in the transformative power of art, Airitam seeks to inspire individuals to reflect upon their own stories and the impact they have on others. She reminds us that we are all creators, shaping narratives through our experiences and dreams. From her early beginnings as a young girl seeking refuge and control in the world of art, Airitam continues to create work that invites viewers to escape, to question, and to reimagine the possibilities of our shared human existence.
Curator: Ally Cirelli
Research Assistant: Maeve Kydd, Mount Holyoke College, 2024
