Ruth E. Carter, a Springfield, Massachusetts native, made history in 2019 becoming the first Black woman to win an Oscar for costume design. She now has two Oscars after winning another academy award this year for her work on “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” This week on Open Studio we bring you a conversation Jared Bowen had with Carter in 2021. He caught up with her at the New Bedford Art Museum where a retrospective of her work — from early Spike Lee films to the wonderland of Wakanda — was on view in an exhibition titled, "Uncommon Threads: The Work of Ruth E. Carter."
And, everything old is new again. Boston’s Grammy-winning Handel and Haydn Society, which just announced its 2023-24 season, has been captivating audiences for 208 consecutive seasons — the most of any performing arts organization in the United States. Now the age-old institution has a new artistic director, Jonathan Cohen. Bowen recently sat down with him to talk about his vision for taking Handel and Haydn society into season 209, and beyond.
We wrap up the show, observing women's history month with artist and scientist Elizabeth James-Perry. She's recently been named a National Endowment for the Arts' National Heritage Fellow, the country’s highest honor in folk and traditional arts. A member of the Wampanoag Tribe, she approaches her artistic work with the power of ancestry, history and the sea — all at her fingertips. We’re bringing you a conversation Bowen had with James-Perry in 2020, when her exhibition, “Ripples. Through a Wampanoag Lens,” was on view at the New Bedford Whaling Museum.
