Curated by literary maven Lisa Pegram, the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) presents Dr. Natasha Gordon-Chipembere, who will read an excerpt of her edge-of-your-seat novel, Finding La Negrita.
Then, she will join social psychologist, public theologian, and author Dr. Christena Cleveland in a conversation on their journeys as artists inspired by spiritual iconography, traveling from the spark of divine inspiration to a work’s creation.
To join this free event in December 8th, please register here!
This program is in partnership between the museum’s Women, Arts, and Social Change initiative and Betty Boyd Dettre Library and Research Center.
💻 Virtual event
❗️RSVP required
📆 Dec 8
⏰ 5:30 to 7:30 PM ET
Please follow Lisa Pegram, Dr. Gordon-Chipembere, and Dr. Christena Cleveland on Instagram!
About Finding La Negrita:
Finding La Negrita is a captivating retelling of the Black Madonna narrative, which has driven Costa Rica’s national and spiritual identity since the 1700s. Written with powerful prose, Natasha delivers a unique and intimate nature of Costa Rican slavery which was radically different than plantation slavery in other parts of the Americas. A provocative, first-of-its-kind perspective on a free Black community during the colonial period in Costa Rica, Finding La Negrita spans time and space as it captures their grapples with love and legacy, secrets and sacrifices, and the line between freedom and enslavement.
About the Author:
Natasha Gordon-Chipembere, Ph.D., is a professor of African Diasporic literature. She is the author of Representation and Black Womanhood: The Legacy of Sarah Baartman (Palgrave), and her writing has been published in Essence Magazine and in Tico Times as the monthly series “Musings from An Afro-Costa Rican.” She is a senior co-editor with Dr. Eduardo Paulino of the AfroLatin@ Diasporas book series from Palgrave, where they prioritize the voices of emerging Afro-Latin@ scholars. Her current writing focuses on slavery and the legacy of Afro-descendants in Latin America.
About the Editor:
Lisa Pegram is a true renaissance woman. A writer, arts integration specialist and publishing professional, she has over 20 years of experience in high-level program design for such organizations as the Smithsonian Institute, Corcoran Gallery of Art and National Geographic. She served as DC WritersCorps program director for a decade, and as co-chair of United Nations affiliate international women’s conferences in the US, India and Bali. Her endeavors as a literary publicist and acquisitions editor are sparked by a desire to use her natural talent as a “connector” in service of underrepresented voices. Lisa completed her MFA in 2012 and has an Executive Certification in Arts & Culture Strategies from UPenn. She is also the editor of Finding La Negrita. Exploring diaspora as a way of life, she’s currently based on the Caribbean island of St. Maarten.
