Artwork from Richard Hunt, including the sculpture (above) that honors civil rights leader Ida B. Wells is part of a film honoring Wells that will be shown at Morris Library on Feb. 6. One of Hunt’s sculptures, “Running Hybrids,” (below) along with his other work, will be featured in the library’s rotunda.
(Photos provided)
January 28, 2025
SIU’s Morris Library to show film on civil rights leader Ida B. Wells, art to honor her
CARBONDALE, Ill. — A documentary on pioneering Black journalist, educator and civil rights leader Ida B. Wells is set for Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Morris Library on Feb. 6.
“The Light of Truth: Richard Hunt’s Monument to Ida B. Wells” will be screened at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 6 in John C. Guyon Auditorium. The free, public event is part of SIU’s Black History Month celebration.
The screening will feature a discussion and Q&A with the film’s creators, Rana Segal, Laurie Little and Vince Singleton, providing the audience with unique insights into the making of the film and the significance of Ida B. Wells’ legacy. While on campus, Segal, Little and Singleton will also speak with a documentary filmmaking class.
Media availability
Filmmakers Rana Segal, Laurie Little and Vince Singleton will be available for interviews from 4:30-5 p.m. Feb. 6. To make arrangements or for more information, contact John Pollitz, dean of Library Affairs, at 618-453-2522.
The film delves into Wells’ influential life dedicated to social justice and the artistic process behind renowned American sculptor Richard Hunt’s creation, erected in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago. The Ida B. Wells National Monument was unveiled in June 2021, a year before SIU bestowed Hunt with an honorary Doctor of Public Arts degree.
Richard Hunt’s works on display
In conjunction with the film screening, Morris Library will feature throughout February an exhibition of selected lithographs and drawings by Hunt that are from SIU’s Sharp Museum collection. Hunt was a visiting artist at SIU Carbondale in 1969. He and the Adeline Dorsky Gallery in New York City donated the artwork to the university between 1973 and 1982.
One of Hunt’s early sculpture masterworks, “Running Hybrids,” is on permanent display in Morris Library and will be in the center of the library rotunda. The sculpture was acquired in 1970 at the time that Hunt had a one-man show in the museum’s Mitchell Gallery.
