Today I got the chance to meet Stephen Marc again and to see his incredible book of photo montages and composites “Passage on the Underground“. Talking with Stephen is inspiring, full of lessons and new understanding about the history of the African in America.
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While on his Underground Railroad explorations, Marc’s experiences include:
- Discovering a long-lost false grave that was the exit from an escape tunnel for fleeing slaves. Though the exit had never been found by the local Underground Railroad historians, Marc’s fresh eye led him to what is now believed to be the solution to a 100-year-old mystery.
- Visiting a house long ago owned by a conductor on the Underground Railroad, Marc talked his way in to photograph it during renovations, because he knew the amazing story of two escaped slaves who hid in the rafters, right above the heads of their would-be captors, who searched the house and left without finding them.
- A connection with a New York community college in Jamestown, home of Catherine Harris, a conductor on the Underground Railroad. When Jamestown Community College attempted to purchase some of Marc’s work that was on display, he volunteered to create a custom piece that reflected the community’s connection to the Underground Railroad…. Passage on the Underground
Stephen shared with us a little about his next project. He is a man on a mission. He is available to speak with young people, especially middle graders, about Slavery, The Underground Railroad and African American History in General. He can be contacted via Arizona State University in Tempe AZ
(Originally posted on 2/6/2010)
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