L. Kasimu Harris
Mr. Victor's Routine: Open Door. Turn on TV. Jerry, Jerry! (The Other Place), New Orleans from the series Vanishing Black Bars & Lounges
2020
Inkjet print
Not on view
Since 2018, Harris has photographed Black-owned bars and lounges in Louisiana, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, and the island of St. Lucia, among other places. In cities like New Orleans, these institutions have been vital safe spaces for African American communities since the late nineteenth century, supporting socializing, leisure, music, community organizing, mutual aid, and spiritual gathering. While the series, Vanishing Black Bars & Lounges, records moments of celebration and solidarity, it also captures a sense of loss and cultural displacement as, increasingly, businesses shutter or are taken over by new management. Harris has said of this shift, “Tradition is paramount—and I fear what will become of my city, and others, if these traditions are lost.”
New Photography 2025: Lines of Belonging, September 14, 2025–January 17, 2026
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