Frank Mehring on Winold Reiss

I. Publications

• "Mediating Mexico: Winold Reiss and the Transcultural Dimension of “Harlem” in the 1920s.” fiar. Journal of the International Association of Inter-American Studies. (2012) [forthcoming]
• "Portraying Transnational America: Aesthetic and Political Dimensions in Winold Reiss's 'Plea for Color'." Reframing the Transnational Turn in American Studies. Winfried Fluck, Donald E. Pease, and John Carlos Rowe (eds.). Hanover: Dartmouth College Press, 2011. (164-192). 
• "The Visual Harlem Renaissance; or, Winold Reiss in Mexico." Amerikastudien/ American Studies. Werner Sollors and Glenda Carpio (eds.). 55.4. (2010): 629-640.
• "'The Unfinished Business of Democracy': Transcultural Confrontations in the Portraits of the German-American Artist Winold Reiss." American Artists in Munich. Artistic Migration and Cultural Exchange Processes. Christian Fuhrmeister, Hubertus Kohle, and Veerle Thielemans (eds). Deutscher Kunstverlag: München, 2009. (193-210).
• Forthcoming: Critical edition of Winold Reiss' Mexico Diary
• Detours to Harlem: Winold Reiss in Mexico and the German-Latin-American Imagination of 'The New Negro'.
• The Democratic Gap: Transcultural Confrontations of German Immigrants and the Promise of American Democracy. Heidelberg: Winter, 2012. [forthcoming]

II. Talks

• Modernist Imaginations: Relocating Harlem as Aesthetic Spaces in Transcultural Contexts. Black States of Desire: Dispossession, Circulation, Transformation. 9th International Conference of the Collegium for African American Research (CAAR). Université Paris Diderot. April 6-9, 2011.
• Transcultural Spaces: The Mexican Imagination and Transatlantic Detours to Harlem. International Conference in Giverny by the TERRA Foundation of American Art. May 30 - June 4, 2010.
• A Plea for Color: Transcultural Confrontations of Winold Reiss and Alain Locke. Black Knowledges, Black Struggles, Civil Rights: Transnational Perspectives. Conference of the Collegium for African American Research in Bremen, Mar. 25-29, 2009.
• Synecdochic (Trans)Nationalism? Portraying the Black Diaspora from a German-American Perspective. Black Diaspora and Germany Across the Centuries. International Conference at the German Historical Institute. Washington, DC. Mar. 19-21, 2009.
• Winold Reiss: Transatlantic Encounters with the Colors of Democracy. Guest Lecture at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery and Smithsonian American Art Museum. Washington, DC. Mar. 12, 2009.
• A Plea for Color: Transcultural Confrontations of Winold Reiss and Alain Locke. Guest Lecture at Seton Hall University. South Orange, NJ. Mar. 4, 2009.
• Modernity and Synecdochic Nationalism? Portraying Transnational America. Transatlantic American Studies. Transcoop Program/Humboldt Foundation. Berlin and Potsdam, Oct. 9-11, 2008.
• 'The Unfinished Business of Democracy': Transcultural Confrontations in the Portraits of the German-American Artist Winold Reiss. American Artists in Munich. Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte. München, October 9-11, 2007.

III. Multi-Media Performances

REAL-IDEAL: Deutsch-Amerikanische Spurensuche - Winold Reiss (1886-1953) und Vera Lachmann (1904-1985).

Multi-media program on German American immigration history and the cultural imaginary of American democracy. The presentation includes images, audio interviews, and live music performances by Frank Mehring (guitar and vocals) and Jens Barnieck (piano) to trace back moments of hope, confrontation, and disillusion. The musical program features compositions by Ferruccio Busoni, George Gershwin, Frank Mehring, Dane Rudhyar, Tui St. George Tucker, and Kurt Weill.

Perfomance locations and dates:

1. Dreifaltigkeits-Germeindehaus Worms, Wormser Kulturnacht. June 19, 2010.
2. John F. Kennedy Institute and Seminaris CampusHotel, Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften. Berlin, June 5, 2010.
3. Schloss Wahn as part of the cultural program of the international conference Culture and International History IV. Cologne, Dec. 21. 2009.
4. University of Mainz as part of the cultural program of the international conference Aufbruch nach Amerika. Mainz, October 07, 2009.

Winold Reiss: Visualizing the Harlem Renaissance

Part One: "Synaesthesia & Music in Winold Reiss's Œuvre"  Frank Mehring, Lecture / Jens Barnieck, Piano
Part Two: "The Legacy of Winold Reiss: A Panel Discussion"

Date: October 24, 2012
Location: Harvard University, Kirkland House
95 Dunster Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

Weary Blues: Synaesthesia & Music in Winold Reiss's Œuvre

Lecture Recital on the German-American Artist Winold Reiss

Date: October 25, 2012
Location: German General Consulate New York / Deutsches Generalkonsulat New York
871 United Nations Plaza,
New York, NY 10017