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The Kinsey Collection Accented An Evening Of Art And Legacy At USC

Thomas Carter |
March 28, 2012 | 3:42 p.m. PDT

Contributor

The Kinsey Collection (Tommy Williamson)
The Kinsey Collection (Tommy Williamson)

Last Thursday’s 34th annual Black Alumni Association scholars’ benefit offered many students, faculty and alumni an extraordinary experience with the arts & culture at USC. Bovard auditorium’s acoustic resonance echoed with a warm welcome from USC President C. L. Max Nikias.

“It is a special, special privilege to welcome you all here tonight—to this evening of art and legacy, as told through the Kinsey Collection,” Nikias said before proceeding to thank BAA’s director, Michelle Turner, for her uncompromising devotion to USC’s students.

President Nikias’ stalwart support for the entire Trojan community genuinely illuminates the impact of his leadership and vision for the advancement of USC. Nikias is constantly making moves toward elevating USC’s faculty, expanding and enhancing USC’s medical enterprises, and more fully embracing and supporting the arts and humanities. This has been the purpose for his hugely successful fundraising campaigns, as well as USC’s increased international presence. Nikias’ presence truly added to last Thursday’s event value.

“A powerful cultural assembly, the Kinsey Collection tells us stories through things, but it also tell us things through stories … These pieces of African Americana now reign a history of resilience over races, dignity over despair, and triumph over travail,” Nikias said. “I constantly, constantly remind our students that science and technology are a means to an end. But real art is our end, as complete human beings.”

The Kinsey collection gives us a more complete story of the African American culture. Guests at the presentation of the collection learned of interesting and little known facts about the history of the African American contribution to global society. It’s proof of their little known, yet significant contributions to the world while under their most constrained circumstances throughout American history.

Miles Winston, a USC Annenberg junior majoring in print journalism, left the event feeling that his knowledge increased from the Kinsey collection presentation.

“I appreciated the event … I got the book. It was a cool event. It was instructive and it was a different kind of experience for me—and definitely enjoyable,” Winston said.

The event replaced previous years’ BAA annual scholars’ benefits, which typically took place over dinner and entertainment at the Beverly Hills Hotel. However, the change was largely welcome. The presentation itself made all the difference.

Bernard and Shirley Kinsey have been avid collectors of art, particularly the art of their own African American heritage. They have collected, for more than 35 years, everything from documents to paintings, manuscripts, sculptures and busts. They live with art.

Bernard Kinsey greeting the audience.
Bernard Kinsey greeting the audience.

When the couple first donated pieces of their collection to the California African American Museum, they had no idea that the collection would become a national touring exhibit. It most recently was on display for 7 months at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American History in Washington D.C., where it was visited by an estimated 2.5 million guests.

Both Shirley and Bernard intrigued the audience with their presentation of historical facts told through artifacts, but Mr. Kinsey put on the show. That’s an undisputed fact. He is a natural lecturer and a dynamic speaker. He connects with his audience. His passion is even a bit forthright and unfiltered—to the chagrin of none, it seemed. He commanded the stage and ignored time constraints in order to drive his messages. It’s quite possible that there might not be a better way to deliver this presentation, other than his way.

At the post-show dessert reception, Mr. Kinsey was asked what made him decide to give to the world this broad range of information sharing. His reply was, simply, “People asked for it.”

The event was truly a worthy occasion and the USC Black Alumni Association and USC Spectrum were on point as hosts. The title of the Kinsey’s book is “The Kinsey Collection: Shared Treasures of Bernard and Shirley Kinsey—Where Art and History Intersect.” It is available for purchase in two editions here.  

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