Safe at home at Rickwood Field
Bill Chapman
There are 22 photographs by Chapman, as well as two by the man Chapman considers his mentor, the great
Bill Chapman, "Rickwood Field Bar-B-Que," 2008.
Bill Chapman
Most of Chapman's photographs in the show are portraits of long-retired Negro Leagues players, sitting in the stands at Rickwood. There are also photographs of Rickwood itself and activities going on there. What could be better than barbecue at the ballpark? The photographs are unframed and unmatted, which adds to their sense of openness and invitation.
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The Negro Leaguers shown aren't famous, certainly not Josh Gibson-famous. Nor are they famous like the two former major leaguers seen: Hall of Fame pitcher Ferguson Jenkins, photographed by Chapman on a visit to Rickwood, or Darryl Strawberry. Chapman photographed Strawberry sitting in the stands with several Negro Leaguers. Note that visible at the bottom of the picture is a
Bill Chapman, "Roosevelt Jackson," 2014.
Bill Chapman
That old-timers like Ernest Fann and Roosevelt Jackson and Odell Daniels aren't famous is fame's loss. As captured by Chapman's camera – 'cherished' might be a more accurate verb – their faces are as marvelous as their names. The appeal of 'The Gospel of the Negro Leagues' for anyone who cares about baseball history is obvious. More important, its appeal to anyone who cares about goodness and humanity – which, as recent events keep reminding us, isn't everyone – may be even greater.
Bill Chapman, "Ernest Fann," 2018.
Bill Chapman
That serigraph is a portrait of Willie Mays. Now
he
was famous: the Say Hey Kid, as fine a ballplayer as ever put on a pair of spikes – and maybe the finest. Mays, who died last year, played for the Black Barons.
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You've likely heard of the Curse of the Bambino. The real curse that hung over the Red Sox for so long wasn't Babe Ruth related. It was the curse of Jackie and the Say Hey Kid. That those two would have lit up that lyric little bandbox is the gospel truth.
THE GOSPEL OF THE NEGRO LEAGUES
At Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center, 41 Second St, Cambridge, through Aug. 1. 617-577-1400, multiculturalartscenter.org/
Mark Feeney can be reached at
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