David Leeming Presents the Bond of the Unusual Door

On May 12, 2024, David A. Leeming delivered a livestreamed presentation called "Jimmy and Beauford: The Bond of the Unusual Door" at a gathering organized by Stonington Free Library in Stonington, Connecticut.

The event was promoted as a talk during which Leeming would speak about the "life-changing and life-long friendship between James Baldwin and the artist Beauford Delaney."

Event flier

Because Leeming is a biographer of Baldwin and Beauford, I looked forward to hearing his focused take on the relationship between the two men. He beautifully wove the theme of "the unusual door" through his presentation and punctuated his talk with images of paintings of Beauford or by Beauford.

Leeming attributed the phrase "the bond of the unusual door" to Baldwin. The first passage through this door occurred when Baldwin met Beauford for the first time as a depressed, 16-year-old high school student. Leeming described how Beauford's relationship with Baldwin grew and deepened and spoke poignantly about how Beauford helped Baldwin develop as a creative artist.

The second passage took place when Beauford joined Baldwin in Paris and the roles the two men previously played in each other's lives were reversed. Beauford now depended on Baldwin for introductions to people and advice on navigating life in the city.

Leeming then described his own experience with "the unusual door" when met Beauford for the first time. Charged by Baldwin to bring Beauford to Istanbul by car in 1966, he experienced firsthand the beauty and torment of Beauford's existence. After a harrowing road trip, they joined Baldwin and spent several days together in Turkey. Beauford painted a portrait of Leeming during that visit.

David A. Leeming presenting "The Bond of the Unusual Door"
Screenshot from Stonington Free Library livestream

Portrait of David Leeming
(1966) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Leeming talked about Baldwin's acquisition of property in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in southern France and Beauford's frequent visits there, particularly when he was physically or mentally fragile. He mentioned Beauford's Rosa Parks series, his love affair with the color "yellow," and his eventual commitment to Sainte-Anne's psychiatric hospital. And he spoke about Baldwin's reaction to Beauford's death.

In closing, Leeming told how he and Baldwin's brother, David, sat up with Baldwin during the final days of his battle with stomach cancer. Leeming said that much of their conversation was about Beauford and revealed that Baldwin was working on a novel about Beauford at that time. Unfortunately, he had made precious little progress on this work by the time he died.

The audience posed many questions after Leeming concluded his talk, but they were not audible on the live stream. My biggest takeaway from the Q&A period was that Leeming's biography of Beauford, entitled Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney, will be republished in 2024 by Karma Books with a forward by Hilton Als.

Rest assured that Les Amis will report on this new edition of Beauford's biography as soon as I obtain and read it!

Beauford at the Paris College of Art Commencement Ceremony

A few weeks ago, Alana Manga, Registrar and Director of Student Success of the Paris College of Art (PCA), invited me to deliver this year's undergraduate commencement address.

Her message included the following statements:

Paris College of Art is an international college of art and design located in the 10eme arrondissement in Paris. We offer American undergraduate and graduate degrees (Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts) in Communication Design, Photography, Fine Arts, Interior Design and Fashion. The student body represents 51 different countries, and a similar number of cultures.

Your support of Beauford Delaney, in addition to the entrepreneurial spirit that led to Entrée to Black Paris and the Wells International Foundation are incredible accomplishments. Having met you at an American University of Paris event, I think your wealth of knowledge and insights would be valued by the graduating artist and designers encountering a world grappling with war.

I was honored to accept this invitation and delighted to base my speech on various aspects of Beauford's life and art.

The ceremony took place on May 10, 2024 at the Club d'Etoile, near Paris' Arc de Triomphe in the 8th arrondissement.

Club de l'Etoile façade
© Wells International Foundation

The weather was perfect and the house was full.

PCA Provost Dr. Michael Meere opened the ceremony with the first congratulatory discourse of the day.

Provost Michael Meere at the podium
© Wells International Foundation

Two members of the Class of 2024 - Ofir Avita, BFA Photography and Kirstin Ceralde, BFA Fine Art - then addressed the audience. Both students delivered thoughtful and amusing speeches that were vigorously applauded.

Dr. Meere announced the winners of student service awards and the Provost Award for Excellence in Teaching and then introduced me. He provided the perfect segway to the information I shared with the audience about Beauford.

I first congratulated the graduates and encouraged them to view themselves and their work as sources of POWER – POWER to bring about positive change in the world.

Through the evocation of events and relationships that Beauford experienced, I then invited them to create and use their art as a source of healing, a means of bridging cultural gaps, a catalyst for social change, and a unifying force in the face of negative preconceived notions and emotions.

Dr. Monique Y. Wells at the podium
© Wells International Foundation

Watch the first segment of the ~20-minute address below.

(Huge thanks to Alana Manga for supplying this video.)

Following my address, Dr. Meere conferred the degrees for BFA students in Communication Design, Fashion Design, Fine Arts, Interior Design, and Photography as well as Certificates in Communications Design, Interior Design, Fashion Design, and Fine Arts.

Dr. Anthony Pinder, Vice Provost, Internationalization and Equity at Emerson College, conferred the degrees for BFA students in the joint Emerson/PCA global Film Art program.

Dr. Meere then invited the students to move the tassles on their graduation caps from right to left, and the ceremony was concluded. The students celebrated with a traditional cap toss and shouts of joy.

Several members of the audience, including PCA faculty, graduates, and family members of graduates, approached me during the reception after the ceremony to tell me how much they enjoyed the stories I shared about Beauford and the effect his art has had in the four areas described above.

I am thankful for such an extraordinary opportunity to extend Beauford's legacy!

Dr. Monique Y. Wells and Alana Manga
© Wells International Foundation

Jimmy and Beauford: The Bond of the Unusual Door

In last week's post, I mentioned that I recently learned of an upcoming livestreamed interview with Beauford's (and James Baldwin's) biographer, David A. Leeming, during which Leeming will discuss the relationship between Beauford and James Baldwin.

Today, I'm sharing details about this interview.

Leeming met Beauford when Baldwin asked him to collect Beauford in Paris and bring him to Istanbul in July 1966. He got to know Beauford quite well during the voyage and the time they spent together once they arrived in Turkey. I wrote briefly about this in the blog post entitled "Beauford in Istanbul".

Portrait of David Leeming
(1966) Oil on canvas
Image from Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney book jacket
Courtesy of Ernie Bynum and Denis Costin (Ernden)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Leeming is a resident of Stonington, Connecticut. The interview will be hosted by the Stonington Free Library on May 12, 2024 from 5 PM to 6 PM Eastern Time. Online event pages are touting it as Leeming "marking" the 100th anniversary of Baldwin's birth (August 2, 1924).

This 1-hour hybrid event is free and open to the public. No registration is required. Those wanting to join the live stream can do so HERE.

For additional information, send email to Karla Umland at karla[at]stoningtonfreelibrary[dot]org.