{"id":2481,"date":"2018-06-07T16:41:17","date_gmt":"2018-06-07T20:41:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/?p=2481"},"modified":"2018-06-25T20:07:08","modified_gmt":"2018-06-25T20:07:08","slug":"oprah-winfreys-journey-is-celebrated-at-the-national-museum-of-african-american-history-and-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/oprah-winfreys-journey-is-celebrated-at-the-national-museum-of-african-american-history-and-culture\/","title":{"rendered":"Oprah Winfrey\u2019s Journey Is Celebrated At The National Museum Of African American History And Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Oprah
Oprah Winfrey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Media powerhouse and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey is being honored and celebrated with her own exhibition at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), highlighting Winfrey\u2019s expansive accomplishments and trailblazing journey throughout her prolific lifetime. <\/span><\/p>\n

Some of Winfrey\u2019s greatest achievements include becoming the first black female billionaire, the first African-American woman to own and film her own television show, and is considered to be the most charitable celebrity, donating millions of dollars through her three main foundations: The Angel Network, The Oprah Winfrey Foundation, and The Oprah Winfrey Operating Foundation. <\/span><\/p>\n

According to the Washington Post<\/a>, the 4,300 square foot exhibit, titled \u201cWatching Oprah: The Oprah Winfrey Show and American Culture,\u201d consists of more than 240 artifacts and multiple media displays including journals, personal photographs, interview segments, and more\u2013all dedicated to providing an in-depth exploration of Winfrey\u2019s monumental journey and how her contributions have shaped the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

Winfrey is the Smithsonian NMAAHC\u2019s largest individual benefactor, offering a hefty contribution of $21 million to the $540 million museum. But the museum director Lonnie G. Bunch III made it clear that Winfrey\u2019s generous donation had no impact on the exhibition. <\/span>\u201cWe made sure there was a bright line, that this was done by the museum and museum scholars,\u201d he said. \u201cThe fundraising was not through Oprah\u2019s people.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Curators Rhea L. Combs and Kathleen Kendrick worked closely with Winfrey on background information and fact-checking. Not only does the exhibit highlight Winfrey\u2019s accomplishments, but it also walks viewers through her personal story and childhood, detailing how the cultural changes in the 1950s and 60s framed her worldview. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re providing a context for understanding not only who she is, but how she became a global figure, and how she is connected to broader stories and themes,\u201d Kendrick told the Post. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCivil rights, the women\u2019s movement, the media and television landscape, she\u2019s at this distinct intersection of all of these dynamic moments,\u201d Combs added. \u201cShe becomes someone at the forefront of dealing with ideas, of discussing hot-button topics like racism and sexual orientation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

One section of the exhibit focuses exclusively on the 25-year evolution of the \u201cOprah Winfrey Show,\u201d the highest-rated talk show in history. Artifacts from the show\u2019s studio are used in order document how the talk show tapped into social issues such as racism and the fight for equality. \u201cShe used television as a social medium, convening conversations and creating these interactive experiences with people,\u201d said Kendrick. \u201cShe\u2019s offering lessons for living, social guidance in a way.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Another section explores Winfrey\u2019s cultural influence, the films she\u2019s produced, books from Oprah\u2019s Book Club, along with her work as a philanthropist. <\/span><\/p>\n

The museum\u2019s director, Bunch, told the Washington Post that he hopes the show will inspire and encourage onlookers to reflect on Winfrey\u2019s everlasting impact. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many issues, about women, power, media, body image,\u201d he said. \u201cThis should be a popular show because of the impact of this person, but it is also a show that allows us to think about what it means that a woman who doesn\u2019t fit the TV look could build a media empire and become an entrepreneur.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWatching Oprah: The Oprah Winfrey Show and American Culture\u201d opens June 8th at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), and runs until June 2019. For ticket information, click <\/span><\/i>here<\/span><\/i><\/a> to visit the Smithsonian\u2019s website. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Media powerhouse and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey is being honored and celebrated with her own exhibition at the Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), highlighting Winfrey\u2019s expansive accomplishments and trailblazing journey throughout her prolific lifetime. Some of Winfrey\u2019s greatest achievements include becoming the first black female billionaire, the first African-American woman to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2482,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[175],"tags":[53,201,31,202,203,204,205,154],"class_list":["post-2481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-culture","tag-art","tag-art-exhibit","tag-featured","tag-nmaahc","tag-oprah","tag-oprah-winfrey","tag-oprahs-book-club","tag-smithsonian"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2481"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2481\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}