Kent Plantation House Opens Black History Art Exhibit to Honor the Enslaved and Historical Figures

The Kent Plantation House opened its Black History Month Art Exhibit to remember the struggles of slavery.

ABC 31 News Reporter Keisha Swafford has the story on how a Louisiana artist honors past historical figures.

Ransom Rambo felt honored to create oil paintings dedicated to enslaved people.

“The very idea of anyone being incarcerated or being held against their will or being made to do unpleasant things without having anyway of escape is just unconscionable, it is sacrilegious on humanity that anyone would be treated like that.

In 2014, he created the 14 faces of freedom to give life to African American heroes.

“You try to put yourself in their place and envision what went in their lives, you get this in your mind, and you start with a sketch and then you continue, and colors of course make everything different.”

Rambo says he tries to portray their emotions and paint their experiences.

“Especially like doing research on these characters that are here today, try to imagine what is in their hearts and their mind, maybe the trials or horrible things they’ve been through or the joy and the happiness such as Mahalia Jackson’s joy for singing or the sadness of Harriet Tubman and the trials she went through.”

Some of the historical faces include Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr, George Washington Carver, and Thurgood Marshall.

Ransom Rambo describes a part of his painting of Rosa Parks: “This is her jail number for riding in the wrong seat, but they picked on the wrong little lady.”

His love for jazz music inspired him to paint black musicians like Lena Horne and Ma Rainey.

He says, “There is no color, God has no color in his mind. We’re all equal and should be treated equally.”

He hopes his artwork shows people there is beauty in every color.

The Kent House will open its Black History Month Art Exhibit on Saturday, February 4th at 10 AM.