HARTFORD, CT.- The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art presents Soul Food! African American Cookery and Creativity, on view through April 22, 2007. African American cooks created the foundation for Southern cuisine. The second known cookbook authored by an African American is "What Mrs. Fisher Knows About Old Southern Cooking, Soups, Pickles, Preserves, Etc." (1881) by Abby Fisher, a former slave who achieved renown in and around San Francisco by the late 1870s as a caterer and prize-winner at local fairs. This exhibition of art and artifacts opens with an examination of rice and sugar, crops integral to the slave trade; examines food icons ranging from the fictional Aunt Jemima and the real-life Uncle Ben to fried chicken and watermelon; and celebrates the soul-stirring and nourishing connections between culture, creativity, and memory. Presented by the Amistad Center for Art & Culture Funders.