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Photography and Abolition
General Admission

STARTS

May 8, 2027

Ends

Sep 5, 2027

$26 Adults

Free for members

Galleries L13-L15

HomeExhibitionsPhotography and Abolition

Photography and Abolition

This groundbreaking exhibition explores the relationship between photography and American abolitionism as it coalesced in the decades leading up to and continuing through the US Civil War (1861–65). Including 225 works from 37 lenders, Photography and Abolition  features rare 19th century daguerreotype portraits of Frederick Douglass, John Brown, and Harriet Beecher Stowe, among other prominent figures, and explores the way abolitionists like Sojourner Truth used photography to self-promote and further their cause. 

Looking back to this history in their own contemporary works, artists Laylah Ali, Dawoud Bey, Omar Victor Diop, Nona Faustine, Glenn Ligon, Jeanine Michna-Bales, Lorna  Simpson, Rashod Taylor, Carrie Mae Weems, Amani Willett, William Earle Williams, and Hank Willis Thomas explore and question the way these historical images have shaped our understanding of the past and its resonance in the present. Sir Isaac Julien’s monumental five channel video installation Lessons of the Hour, on view at the heart of the exhibition, will also make its Kansas City debut. 

Organized by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Generous support provided by Paul DeBruce and Linda Woodsmall-DeBruce, Hall Family Foundation, Shirley and Barnett Helzberg Jr., Bill and Sara Morgan, G. Kenneth and Ann Baum Philanthropic Fund, Donald Hall Jr., Nancy and Rick Green, The Honorable Jon R. Gray and Dr. Valerie E. Chow, Eleanor and David Lisbon, Terra Foundation for American Art, The Ford Foundation, Campbell/Calvin Fund for Exhibitions, and Henry & Marion Bloch Foundation Fund.

Header image: Unknown maker, American. [Portrait of a Woman, New Orleans], ca. 1855. Daguerreotype, quarter plate, 4 1/4 × 3 1/4 inches (10.8 × 8.26 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri. Gift of the Hall Family Foundation, 2020.7.94.  

Photograph from the upcoming exhibition Photography and Abolition at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Fine Arts Sojourner Truth 1864
Unknown maker, American. Sojourner Truth, 1864. Albumen carte-de-visite, 4 × 2 3/8 inches (10.16 × 6.03 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri. Gift of the Hall Family Foundation, 2007.17.34. Image courtesy of Nelson-Atkins Digital Production & Preservation.
Photograph from the upcoming exhibition Photography and Abolition at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Fine Arts Frederick Douglass 1858
Unknown maker, American. Frederick Douglass, ca. 1858. Daguerreotype, sixth-plate, 3 1/4 × 2 3/4 inches (8.26 × 6.99 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Gift of Hallmark Cards, Inc., 2005.27.42. Image courtesy of Nelson-Atkins Digital Production & Preservation.  
Photograph from the upcoming exhibition Photography and Abolition at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Fine Arts Nona Faustine 1977 Sylvester Manor
Nona Faustine, American (1977-2025). There are few markers left but your black body is the marker. The land does hold the memory of your existence. You only have to put it there in its natural state to remember. — Harriet Tubman, Sylvester Manor, Shelter Island, NY, 2021. Pigment print, ed. of 5, 40 × 60 inches (101.6 × 152.4 cm). © Estate of Nona Faustine 2026. Courtesy of the Estate of Nona Faustine and Higher Pictures.
Photograph from the upcoming exhibition Photography and Abolition at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Fine Arts John Brown 1846
Augustus Washington, American (1820-1875). John Brown, ca. 1846-1847. Daguerreotype, quarter plate, 3 1/4 × 4 1/4 inches (8.26 × 10.8 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri. Gift of the Hall Family Foundation in honor of the 75th anniversary of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2008.6.4. Image courtesy of Nelson-Atkins Digital Production & Preservation.  
Photograph from the upcoming exhibition Photography and Abolition at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Fine Arts Sir isaac Julien 1867 Douglass
Sir Isaac Julien, English (b. 1960). J.P. Ball Studio, 1867 Douglass (Lessons of the Hour), 2019. Inkjet print, 22 ½ x 29 7/8 inches (57 x 76 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Purchase: acquired through the generosity of the Hall Family Foundation, 2026.40. © Isaac Julien. Courtesy the artist and Victoria Miro. 
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