KANSAS CITY, MO.- A focused exhibition with 13 works in various media at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, History & Hope: Celebrating the Civil Rights Movement, brings together photographs, drawings and prints that acknowledge the role artists and musicians played in the civil rights struggle. History & Hope is on view from Nov. 22 through May 18, 2014 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington in August 1963. The exhibition was created in collaboration with the American Jazz Museum, the Black Archives and the Nelson-Atkins.

“This was a powerful and very meaningful collaboration,” said Dr. Delia Gillis, a history professor at the University of Central Missouri and board member of the Black Archives of Mid-America in Kansas City. “It was important to gather the rich and very personal memories of those who have been touched by the civil rights movement.”

The exhibition showcases the work of artists and musicians who were concerned about the struggle for human equality and racial harmony, as well as those who remain influenced by the movement today.

“I’m very proud the Nelson-Atkins has art in its collection that speaks so eloquently to the civil rights movement,” said Kreshaun McKinney, Educator for Public Programs. “It was truly a joy to bring this exhibition to fruition with the community.”

Artists and civil rights activists from Kansas City bring their voices to the exhibition in the form of labels that reflect memories of the movement.

“We all decided that conversation about these works of art would add an enormous depth to this exhibition,” said Sonié Joi Thompson-Ruffin, visiting curator at the American Jazz Museum. “I chose several activists and artists who were engaged in or inspired by the civil rights movement in Kansas City, and we captured those comments on videotape. They were then transcribed and placed on the labels.”

Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and Kansas City Mayor Sly James are among the community members whose remarks bring perspective to the exhibition.

“The Mayor made some very meaningful observations as he looked at one of the photographs in the exhibition,” said Rose May, former Head, Interpretation at the Nelson-Atkins. “His personal experiences growing up as a black man in Kansas City are a powerful statement about the civil rights movement.”

A response station allows visitors to express their own feelings and memories of the Civil Rights Movement..

“This type of small, focused exhibition prompts community dialogue to bring life to the museum’s diverse collection,” said Julián Zugazagoitia. Director & CEO. “It allows us to reflect on the past so we are better able to build our common future.”

Zugazagoitia expressed gratitude to all the participants who made the exhibition possible. History & Hope can be seen on the museum’s second floor in the American collection, Gallery 214.