Skip to Main Content
Boston University
  • Bostonia
  • BU Today
  • The Brink
  • University Publications

    • Bostonia
    • BU Today
    • The Brink
  • School & College Publications

    • The Record
Other Publications
BU Today
  • Sections
News, Opinion, Community

How Folk Art Shapes Our Identity

WBUR presents Kristin Schwain on modernity’s usable pasts

March 15, 2007
Twitter Facebook
Kristin Schwain is BU’s Luce Program in Scripture and Literary Arts 2007 Luce Visiting Assistant Professor.

In 1927, three figures of the Harlem Renaissance, African-American author, diplomat, and songwriter James Weldon Johnson, visual artist Aaron Douglas, and illustrator Charles B. Falls, published God’s Trombones, a book to preserve the sermons of “old-time Negro preachers.”

Kristin Schwain, BU’s Luce Program in Scripture and Literary Arts 2007 Luce Visiting Assistant Professor, discusses how the three men’s contributions to the book achieve their goal of reenacting a sermon and of creating an African-American spirit. She delivered the lecture, Modernity’s Usable Pasts: James Weldon Johnson, Aaron Douglas, and Charles B. Falls’ God’s Trombones, at BU on February 22. Her lecture was introduced by Peter Hawkins, a College of Arts and Sciences professor of religion and the Luce Program director.

BU Today
brings the talk to you courtesy of WBUR, Boston University’s award-winning National Public Radio station, which broadcast it on Boston University World of Ideas on March 4, 2007.

Click here to listen to the lecture.

 

Explore Related Topics:

  • Visual Arts
  • Share this story

Share

How Folk Art Shapes Our Identity

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • LinkedIn
  • Email

Latest from BU Today

  • University News

    Elise Morgan Named BU College of Engineering Dean

  • Public Health

    Grilled Meats Can Be Carcinogenic. BU Health Researcher’s Tips on Preparing Them More Safely

  • Things-to-do

    See a Concert Under the Stars with the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, Featuring BU Faculty

  • Watch Now

    BU, but Make It Emoji

  • NATIONAL ICE CREAM DAY

    How to Celebrate National Ice Cream Day

  • Health & Medicine

    Why Is Everyone So Obsessed with Protein? BU Nutrition Expert Has Some Answers

  • Sports

    BU Table Tennis Player Headed to World Championships in Germany

  • Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

    Americans Are Buying More European Sunscreens. Are They Better Than Domestic Ones?

  • Film & TV

    Did You Win Starbucks Gift Cards in Our Superman Trivia Quiz?

  • Social Media

    A Viral Marriage Proposal Raises Privacy Questions in the Social Media Age

  • Things-to-do

    Our List of Outdoor Concerts to Enjoy This Summer

  • Arts & Culture

    This CFA Student Is Using Art to Help Medical Patients

  • Film & TV

    Why Do We Keep Watching Reality Dating Shows?

  • University News

    Boston University Announces Budget Cuts, Layoffs Amid Financial Pressures

  • Social Media

    COM Class Teaches Students How to Promote Their Content Online

  • Things-to-do

    How to Spend the July Fourth Weekend in Boston

  • Things-to-do

    Best Places to Watch Fireworks in Boston This Fourth of July

  • 25 Charles River Campus Faculty Receive Promotions

  • Books

    With Summer Officially Here, 10 Great Beach Reads

  • Things-to-do

    Want to Beat the Summer Heat? Check Out One of the Boston Area’s Many Public Pools

Section navigation

  • Sections
  • Must Reads
  • Videos
  • Series
  • Close-ups
  • Archives
  • About + Contact
Get Our Email

Explore Our Publications

Bostonia

Boston University’s Alumni Magazine

BU Today

News, Opinion, Community

The Brink

Pioneering Research from Boston University

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • Instagram
  • Weibo
  • TikTok
© Boston University. All rights reserved. www.bu.edu
© 2025 Trustees of Boston UniversityPrivacy StatementAccessibility
Boston University
Notice of Non-Discrimination: Boston University prohibits discrimination and harassment on the basis of race, color, natural or protective hairstyle, religion, sex or gender, age, national origin, ethnicity, shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, pregnancy or pregnancy-related condition, military service, marital, parental, veteran status, or any other legally protected status in any and all educational programs or activities operated by Boston University. Retaliation is also prohibited. Please refer questions or concerns about Title IX, discrimination based on any other status protected by law or BU policy, or retaliation to Boston University’s Executive Director of Equal Opportunity/Title IX Coordinator, at titleix@bu.edu or (617) 358-1796. Read Boston University’s full Notice of Nondiscrimination.
Search
Boston University Masterplate
How Folk Art Shapes Our Identity
0
share this
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.