Dark Testament:
A Century of Black Writers on Justice

American Writers Museum
Chicago, Illinois

Dark Testament, a temporary exhibit at Chicago’s American Writers Museum, explores racial injustice in America through the works by African American writers, musicians, and activists from the end of the Civil War through the civil rights movement of the mid-1960s. 

The Amaze Design team worked closely with the AWM team of curators led by Harvard fellow Dr. Keidrick Roy. Featured writers include Frederick Douglass, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Ida B. Wells, James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Malcolm X, Maya Angelou, Pauli Murray, Ralph Ellison, W.E.B. Du Bois, Zora Neale Hurston, and Nella Larsen—to name just a few. This exhibit demonstrates to visitors that the exceptional works of Black artists and authors offer a variety of entry points for visualizing a future in the U.S. that the promises of the Declaration of Independence and the progress of the civil rights movement have not yet reached.

This multidisciplinary initiative includes on-site exhibits spanning three gallery spaces, a series of online exhibits, programs with contemporary Black authors and curricula, and activities for middle and high school students.

Exhibit Fabrication: Chicago Scenic Studios, Chicago, IL
Media Design: Trivium Interactive, Boston, MA