Artist Profile, 2011

Artist Profile

Riché Deianne Richardson

b. May 26, 1971, Montgomery, Alabama

Reside in Ithaca, New York

Academic Employment: Associate professor, Cornell University, Africana Studies and Research Center, 2008- (tenured in 2009); University of California, Davis, English Department, 1998-2008(tenured in 2005); scholar and editor in Africana, African American studies and Southern studies, as well as African American and American literature

Academic Books: Black Masculinity and the U.S. South: From Uncle Tom to Gangsta, University of Georgia Press, 2007; Black Femininity, Global South,: Visualizing the Politics of Race, Reaction and Revolution( in progress); Co-editor, book series, "The New Southern Studies," the University of Georgia Press, 2005-

Art Books: An Artist at the Ambassador’s: Notes on Visit to Paris As a Cultural Envoy for the U.S. Embassy (in progress)

Ph.D. Duke University, American literature, 1998; Certificate, African and African American Studies

B.A. Spelman College, English major, 1993; minors in philosophy and women's studies

Visited Paris, France as a “Cultural Envoy” to the U.S. Embassy as a guest in its Speaker Program January 10-17, 2009 with a grant under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State. Visit in tandem with the year-long “Un Patchwork de Cultures” exhibition on tour in France honoring the shared history of the U.S. and France, and highlighting Louisiana history and touching on issues such as Hurricane Katrina. Had five quilts displayed. Events included talks with three groups of high school students, three groups of college students, several gallery talks and film screenings, as well as a dialogue on diversity at the U.S. Embassy.*

Honored with a talk, exhibition, reception and film screening at the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence in Paris (during the tenure of Craig Stapleton), January 14, 2009.

Art Medium

1992-Present Mixed media appliqué art quilts are handmade, three-dimensional, and incorporate drawing, painting and a range of other intricate design techniques, including architectural elements, to produce an art quilt style that resembles portraiture. Signature project includes "Portraits" and "Portraits II," the basis for continuing experiments in developing a vast array of other art quilt design techniques.

Solo Exhibitions

2015 “Portraits II: From Montgomery to Paris with a Charleston Twist”(in progress); show features 40 new works, including six larger quilt installations that will alone take four years to produce. The exhibition includes series such as "Family," "Political," "Hollywood," "Paris," "Delta," "Civil Rights," "Black History," and "Alabama Women," and other embedded series within the family series including "Debutantes," "Wedding," "Education," "Babies," and "Self-Portraits." This upcoming exhibition will lead off with a deluxe, triangulated and integrated triple-quilt installation in the "Debutante Series" within the "Family Series." The show will also make the original 22 quilts from the 2008 debut show "Portraits" available for the audience on a side wall. Some of the large installations draw on technology, are interactive, and incorporate features such as lighting and music. This community-based art initiative will unfold against the backdrop of the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Selma-to-Montgomery March as well as the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Montgomery Bus Boycott in Montgomery, Alabama. A deluxe and comprehensive catalog will accompany this exhibition of 62 quilts, which will also be packaged with specially-built crates and banners, along with the original "Portraits" quilts, for travel to several cities after the initial showing in Montgomery scheduled for all three months of summer, a peak time for family reunions. Montgomery exhibition will be accompanied by a range of innovative programs. Currently under development and facilitated by a planning grant.

Curator, Georgette Norman

2009 The U.S. Amabassador’s Residence. Featured three works, including two from “Paris Series” in tandem with talk, reception and film screening, including art quilts featuring Simone de Beauvoir, Josephine Baker and . Also featured a work from “Family” series. January 14, 2009; organized by Geraldine Chouard and Sophie Nadeau.

2008 "Portraits from Montgomery to Paris: Mixed Media Appliqué Art Quilts by Riché Deianne Richardson. Le Début." Rosa Parks Museum Gallery and Library at Troy University, Montgomery, Alabama. Includes four inaugural series-"Family," "Paris," Political" and "Hollywood"-and features three installations. Range of quilts featured in exhibition incorporates themes ranging from education and the debutante tradition in the U.S. South to Gone with the Wind, the Civil Rights Movement. Show featured 22 works from quilting repertoire. July-August 2008; extended through September.

Curator, Georgette Norman, Director, Rosa Parks Museum and Library
Founder and formerly director of Alabama African American Arts Alliance

Exhibition print photographer, Keith Stevenson, Berkeley, California

•2011 “Portraits from Montgomery to Paris.” Carol Tatkon Art Gallery. Cornell University. March 28–April 29 2011
Curator, Laurie Fuller

Group Exhibitions

2009 “An Evening with Josephine Baker” featuring Nicholas Leichter Dance and Stephanie Batten Bland.
“Featured “Josephine Baker: Playing Venus Hot to Trot” as a complement to performances. Cornell
University. October 15, 2009. Arranged by Byron Suber.

2009 “From Functional to Fancy: An Eastville Quilt Sampler,” Eastville Heritage House, Sag Harbor, New York. Featured “Josephine Baker: Playing Venus Hot to Trot” along with 13 works by other quilters.
July, 2009. Curator: Patricia A. Turner

2009 “Black Debutantes.” The Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Montgomery, Alabama. Exhibition of 20 enlarged photographs, as well as selected art pieces, organized as part of the Southern Writers' Project Festival of Plays in tandem with an event entitled “Tea and Talk” for the debut reading of author/ playwright Pearl Cleage's "The Nacirema Society Requests the Honor of Your Presence at a Celebration of Their First One Hundred Years." Features art quilt from Family and Debutante series entitled “Keri Diamond Smith, Age 17: Debutante Cotillion Program Portrait, 2004.” Also highlights a professional photograph of the artist taken at age 17 by Clifford Hunter during formal presentation as a debutante at the Montgomery Civic Center on April 1, 1989 in the Phi Delta Kappa Cotillion, as well as the photograph featuring the formal presentation photo of Megan Smith as a debutante in 2006. May 15, 2009. Curator: Soyia Ellison.

2009 “Quilts for Obama.” Historical Society of Washington DC. Features 60 quilts to honor presidential inauguration on January 20, 2009. “Obama Time: Always (Congratulations, Mr. President!),”
which is also featured on the commemorative poster , on loan February 15-August 15, and originally contracted for display through July 26, 2009. Exhibition went into second encore through September on
request of the mayor of Washington, DC and the Congressional Black Caucus. Second quilt added for final
encore in September entitled “The Magnificient Michelle Obama, Our First Lady: Strength and Honor are her Clothing (Proverbs 31:25). “ Curator: Roland Freeman.

2009 “Un Patchwork de Cultures.” Mairie du 5e/City Hall, 5th District, Paris, France. National exhibition sponsored by the Cultural Affairs office at the U.S. Embassy in Paris and designed to honor the shared history of France and the U.S. Five quilts were highlighted to help promote this touring show during its days in Paris, including two from Paris series (Josephine Baker, Simone de Beauvoir), two from Family series (“JoAnn and Junior Man” and “Riché Deianne Richardson” from the Education/Graduation series), and one from political series, “Obama Time.” January 7-21, 2009. Curator: Sophie Nadeau; also facilitated by Geraldine Chouard.

2007 Annual Bullroast Gala Show and Sale. Les Beaux Arts. Sacramento, California. Private show designed to highlight the work of several local artists. Featured four works, including "The Ties That Bind," "Another Tie, Too," "The Honeymooners: Celebrating 47 Years," and "Remembering a Dutiful Daughter: Simone de Beauvoir" Sacramento, California; also photographed and interviewed for the Sacramento Observer; October 7, 2007. Curator: Adolphus McGhee

Prior Art Exhibitions

1999 Les Belles Artes. Florin Mall. Featured three works, including "My Family Quilt," "JoAnn, School Days," and "Delta Quilt." Sacramento, California. September, 1999.

1995 Duke Memorial Church. Featured two works, including "My Family Quilt" and autobiography art quilt entitled "Destiny's Child: Borrowed Robes." Durham, North Carolina. March 1995.

1995 Women of Color Celebration. Featured two works, including "My Family Quilt" and autobiography art quilt entitled "Destiny's Child: Borrowed Robes." Duke University. Durham, North Carolina. March 1995.

1993 "Feminists in Action: Women's Words, Women's Works." Annual Women's Studies conference. Featured two works, including "My Family Quilt" and autobiography art quilt entitled "Destiny’s Child, Borrowed Robes," as well as an amateur bookbinding project featuring "Going Places: The Autobiography of Emma Jenkins Richardson." Duke University. Durham, North Carolina. November 1993.

1993 Albert Manley Student Center. Featured one work, including "Delta quilt" Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Eta Kappa Chapter. Spelman College. Atlanta, Georgia. April 1993.

1987 Soft sculpture doll won prize in art contest at annual convention sponsored by the Alabama Association of Federated Youth Clubs. Birmingham, Alabama. Spring 1987.

Live Radio and Television Interviews

2007 Civil Arts Radio Show. Live radio interview hosted by Milton Bowens (1 hour). March 11, 2007

Print News and Media Features

2009 Artist’s image and quilt featured in national quilting magazine in keeping with Patricia A. Turner’s Crafted Lives
2009 Feature by Daniel Aloi in Ezra magazine, Cornell University. Summer 2009.
2009 Mentioned in an article on Patricia A. Turner’s Crafted Lives: Stories and Studies of African American Quilters, “New Book Examines Black Quilts from Slavery to the White House,” Los Angeles Sentinel, March 25, 2009.
2009 Mentioned in an article on Crafted Lives, “New UCD Book Examines Black Quilts from Slavery to the White House,” The Daily Democrat, Woodland, California. March 13, 2009
2009 Mentioned in an article on Crafted Lives, “New UCD Book Examines Black Quilts from Slavery to the White House,” UC Davis News and Information, Davis, California. March 12, 2009
2009 Mentioned with quilt image at Paris Update: Insider’s Weekly Guide to the City of Light. January 21, 2009.
2009 “Levez la main et dites ouallah!” Bondy Blog interview. January 19, 2009.
2009 “Quilt, Always.” Inauguration Day ParisDailyPhoto feature by Eric Lieu. January 20, 2009.
2009 Feature Story. “Artist Shares Her Cultural Quilts with Parisians” by Daniel Aloi Cornell Chronicle. January 23 2009.
2008 Sidebar feature. “Montgomery to Paris” in “Arts and Travel” section of the Montgomery Advertiser,
August 17, 2008; exhibition also mentioned daily in “Arts and Events” section.
2008 Featured photographically with art quilts and among other quilt artists in Fall 2008 catalog of University Press of Mississippi on page discussing Patricia A. Turner’s Crafted Lives: Stories and Studies of African- American Quilters
2007 Feature Story: “Professor Pays Tribute to Her Southern Roots” by Beth Curda The Davis Enterprise. February 28, 2007

Published Images of Art Work in News Media

2009 “Obama Time: Always” featured in The Daily Democrat, Woodland, California. March 13, 2009
2009 “Obama Time: Always” featured in UC Davis News and Information. March 12, 2009
2009 “Obama Time: Always” featured in cameo on the front page of the Cornell Chronicle. January 23, 2009, as well as on Cornell University’s internet homepage for several days. Photos of four quilts also featured
alongside article
2009 “Obama Time: Always” featured in Paris Update: Insider’s Weekly Guide to the City of Light. January 21, 2009.
2009 “Obama Time: Always” featured in ParisDailyPhoto with artist. January 20, 2009.
2009 “Obama Time: Always” featured in Bondy Blog. January 19, 2009
2007 “Photograph of artist holding “The Ties that Bind: JFK, MLK, RFK” taken by Wayne Tilcock featured the front page of the Davis Enterprise, February 28, 2007

Published Images of Art Work in Books

2009 Photograph of “The Ties that Bind: JFK, MLK, RFK” taken by Keith Stevenson featured in Patricia A. Turner’s Crafted Lives, Stories and Studies of African American Quilters. Artist also featured with this art quilt among photos on the book’s cover.

2009 Photograph of “Obama Time: Always” taken by Keith Stevenson featured on “Quilts for Obama” commemorative poster. Designed by Roland Freeman. February 2009.

2004 Photograph of "The Ties that Bind: JFK, MLK, RFK" taken by Izzy Schwartz featured on back cover of English Department Newsletter. University of California, Davis. May 2004.

Catalogs

2009 Exhibition catalog. Designed by Géraldine Chouard to accompany five quilts displayed in the Paris showing of “Un Patchwork de Cultures” by the U.S. Embassy, which highlights civil rights history as well as the film “A Portrait of the Artist” and Patricia A. Turner’s Crafted Lives

2008 Exhibition catalog. “Portraits from Montgomery to Paris: Appliqué Quilts by Riché Deianne Richardson”
Rosa Parks Museum Gallery and Library, Troy University. Montgomery, Alabama. Features a note from
museum director, Georgette Norman, as well as introductory essay by Patricia A. Turner entitled “Home
to Montgomery: Riché Richardson’s Portraits” and an artist statement.

Scholarship

2009 Biographical chapter on art quilt work entitled "The Ties That Bind: Riché Richardson" in Patricia A. Turner's book on African American quilts entitled Crafted Lives: Stories and Studies of African-American Quilters (The University Press of Mississippi, 2009. Book documents history of African Americans in the U.S. through quilts. Essay focuses on biography in discussion of issues related to the South and the Civil Rights Movement.

Artist’s Writings and Criticism on Art

n.d. An Artist at the Ambassador’s: Notes on Visit to Paris As a Cultural Envoy for the U.S. Embassy (in progress)

n.d. "Paths to Art." Autobiographical Essay. Written 5/25-5/26/07

2010 “Kara Walker’s Old South and New Terrors,” NKA: Journal of Contemporary African Art

2009 “Binding Nations through Art Quilts and a Visit to the U.S. Embassy in Paris as a Cultural Envoy,” forthcoming in TransAtlantica: American Studies Journal

2007 “Madame Kara Walker: Notre Artiste,” TransAtlantica: American Studies Journal

Print Photography and Releases (1850 Print Cards Produced and Currently in Circulation)

2009 Special Edition Print Card, “Obama Time: Always,” in honor of “Un Patchwork de Cultures” and on the occasion of talk and reception at Ambassador’s Residence in Paris. Photography by Keith Stevenson.

2008 Print card releases 5-8; "Sweet Scarlett? Vivien Leigh Playing Southern Belle," "Playing 'Mammy': Not
Hattie McDaniel!", "A Tie, Too?: Malcolm X," and "Riché Deianne Richardson: Graduation Picture at
St. Jude Educational Institute of 'The City of St. Jude' (The Last Camping Place for Selma-to-Montgomery
Marchers in 1965," Print Card re-releases of 1-4, modified without front name tag (described below).
Photography by Keith Stevenson

2007 Print card releases 1-4; photography by Keith Stevenson, including "The Ties That Bind: JFK, MLK, RFK," "JoAnn and 'Junior Man': Easter Sunday, Montgomery, Alabama, 1954," "Remembering a Dutiful Daughter: Simone de Beauvoir," (Commemorating 100 Years, 1908-2008) and "Playing Venus Hot to Trot: Josephine Baker" (Commemorating 100 Years, 1906-2006). Distinguished by name banner on front

Film and Documentary Features

2010 “The Skin Quilt Project.” Interviewed and comments highlighted in multiple segments in a documentary that addresses how quilting positively impacts black women’s self esteem and counteracts the politics of colorism in black communities. Film on African American quilts directed by Lauren Cross

2008 "Riché Richardson: A Portrait of the Artist." Short film by Anne Crémieux and Géraldine Chouard, 22 min. Features clips from interview with artist in Paris, France, an interview with folklorist Patricia A. Turner, also taped in Paris, as well as the artist touring and responding to historic locations in the city, such as Notre Dame, Paradise Du Fruit, Le Deux Magots, the residence of Thomas Jefferson on the Champs Ellysee, the Paris Opera, and fabric shops and stores in Montmartre. Editing in progress. Film broadcast at the Rosa Parks Museum Gallery for duration of exhibition; also aired and screened throughout “Un Patchwork de Cutlures” exhibition at Mairie du 5e in Paris (January 7-21, 2009; first shown by the directors in Provence, France in May, 2008 and since screened publicly at a range of locations; special public screenings have included le Musée de la toile de Jouy (September 21, 2008) and the Ambassador’s Residence in Paris (January 14, 2009); available in 3 parts on YouTube for viewing.

2007 “Fleshly Obsessions” by Jamon Larry. Addresses African American women’s bodies and topics such as eating disorders. Aired at African American Student Film Festival. June 7, 2007.

Gallery Talks and Formal Receptions

2008 Gallery talk during formal public reception at Rosa Parks Museum Library Gallery for “Portraits”
(Primarily sponsored by Alabama State Representative Thad McClammy)

2009 Gallery talk during formal public reception at Mairie du 5e with Embassy officials for “Un Patchwork
de Cultures”

Public Art Talks and Community Outreach

2012 "Building and Living with a Collection of Southern Folk Art." The Carol Tatkon Art Gallery. Cornell University. April 26, 2012.

2011 "Quilting Black History From The Civil Rights Movement In Montgomery To The Obamas." The Carol Tatkon Art Gallery. Cornell University. April 18, 2011.

2011 “Quilting Black History from Frederick Douglass to Toni Morrison. The College of William and Mary.
Exhibited seven works and did Powerpoint slide show and lecture. Organized by Jacqui McLendon. Williamsburg, Virginia. February 24, 2011

2010 “Art and Democracy.” Trunk Show, Tompkins County Quilter’s Guild. Ithaca, New York. March 9, 2010. Exhibited nine works, did Powerpoint slide show and offered lecture.

2009 “Reflections on Montgomery’s Modernism, the Civil Rights Movement and the Paths to a New Southern Art in the U.S. The Ambassador’s Residence. Paris, France. January 14, 2009

Five brief gallery talks on art exhibition, along with talks and dialogues with high school and college student groups in Paris as part of itinerary of speaking engagements under the auspices of the U.S. Embassy, including several events in the banlieue. Art-related talks included “Art in Education and My Education as an Artist,” “On the Legacy of Rosa Parks, St. Jude Educational Institute and a Youth Mission in Montgomery,” “Paris Travels to Montgomery and a Walk by Faith,” and “The Civil Rights Movement and the Legacy of Rosa Parks”

2008 Dialogue on quilt art with fourth and fifth graders at E.D. Nixon Elementary School in Montgomery, Alabama in conjunction with “Portraits,” arranged by Alabama State Representative Thad McClammy and the E.D. Nixon Foundation. August 20, 2008.

2008 Talk on quilt art in weekly art forum at The Breadloaf School of English. Asheville, North Carolina.
July 2008.

1999 "Stitching Our Lives Together: Reflections on Autobiographical Quilt-making". African American and African Studies Program. University of California, Davis. February 1999.

References

Available upon request

Art events and selected images are archived in several albums on artist’s FaceBook art page and website

Contact information:

Rdr83@cornell.edu
310 Triphammer Road
Africana Studies and Research Center
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14850

*Comprehensive Summary of Events as “Cultural Envoy” to the U.S. Embassy (January 12-16, 2009)

●January 12, 2009 Collège Martin Luther King, Villiers-le-Bel in Eastern Paris.
“Art in Education and My Education As an Artist.” Talk with high school group on art and education, highlighting the role of art in helping to sustain the health and well being of a democracy, the difference that art literacy can make in helping to set foundations for a lifetime of learning. Translation provided by Jennifer Bullock, Cultural Affairs Office, U.S. Embassy in Paris and Christiane Tyburn, Principal.

●January 13, 2009 The U.S. Embassy in Paris
“Southern Horrors, Global Terrors: Hurricane Katrina and Inequities of Race and Gender in the U.S.” Talk addressed the public response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and the impact of the U.S. South on race and gender politics in the 2008 presidential election. Led to a broader dialogue with the newly formed diversity group at U.S. Embassy, which is concerned about addressing issues of diversity for over 1000 employees. Brown-bag-lunch coordinated by Public Affairs Officer at US Embassy, Randiane Peccoud.

● January 13, 2009 Mairie du 5e (City Hall V) in Paris, Exhibition site talk with Théodore Monard Vocational High School in Noisy-le-Sec
“On the Legacy of Rosa Parks, St. Jude Educational Institute and the Youth Mission in Montgomery.” Discussed St. Jude Educational Institute of the “City of St. Jude” in Montgomery and the campus’s role as a camping place in the Selma-to-Montgomery march in 1965, and its hospital as a haven for blacks in Montgomery during the era of segregation, and as the backbone for expanding the black Catholic community in Montgomery. Also discussed background as SGA president (1988-89) and vice-president (1987-88) there, and work to establish a program for children and teens at Cleveland Avenue YMCA in Montgomery as a high school senior in light of St. Jude’s tradition of earning service credits for graduation. Students are working on a quilt project on the Holocaust and plan a trip to Washington, DC. Translation by Géraldine Chouard

● January 13, 2009 Mairie du 5e (City Hall V) in Paris,
Exhibition opening reception in Paris with local and embassy officials. Over 200 guests attended. Made remarks on art quilts featured in exhibition. Translation provided by Géraldine Chouard

●January 14, 2009 Ecole Internationale de Sciences du Traitemetn de l’Information (EISTI), Cergy
“The ‘Race Card’ Myth, Diversity, and Civility in Academia.” For an auditorium of about 150 engineering students, offered a close analysis of the notion of the “race card,” including its linkages to the O.J. Simpson case and its problematic deployments in contemporary political and public dialogues. Facilitated by Nicoleta Zagni, Instructor.

● January 14, 2009 The Ambassador’s Residence, The U.S. Embassy, Paris France.
“Reflections on Montgomery’s Modernism, the Civil Rights Movement and the Paths to a New Southern Art in the US.” The short film “A Portrait of the Artist” was screened, an event that over 120 guests attended. Final official public event sponsored during Ambassador Stapleton’s term, prior to his family’s return to the U.S. Essay highlights civil rights heroines such as Rosa Parks and her friend Johnnie Rebecca Carr, my great aunt. Draws on my own grandmother’s experience as a teen in the National Youth Administration inaugurated by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and her later experiences migrating to Pensacola, Florida with my grandfather and working on a job in the Navy Yard, to show how opening up such opportunities to black youth in Montgomery who had been shut out of the system by segregation made a difference in her life and prepared her to help support the project of American democracy later on. This was important to emphasize, for instance, in thinking about a similar sense of exclusion from French citizenship and opportunities that many minority youth feel in the suburbs of Paris, frustrations that were highlighted on a global scale during the unrest in 2005. Translated by Anne Crémieux

●January 15 Université Paris 10, Nanterre
“Paris Travels to Montgomery and a Walk by Faith.” Brief talk on the process of making the film prior to film screening and q&a with students in African American history and a US politics research group. Discussed the uses of art in teaching and issues such as balancing artistic and academic life. Session also attended by Patricia A. Turner, who was also featured in the film. Event was organized by Anne Crémieux, one of the filmmakers.

● January 15 Société d’Etudes Nord Américaines (SENA)
“Black Masculinity and the U.S. South: From the Myth of Uncle Tom and the ‘Bad Negro’ to the Jena Six.” Respondent offered talk on book’s key arguments. Talk on book project overviewed the book, responded to the inquiries and situated project in relation to contemporary issues such as the Jena Six and the continuing phenomenon of nationalizing and globalizing Southern ideologies as well as its major movements. Dialogue continued later on academic labor issues with a range of French scholars who work on the United States, including Catherine Pouzoulet. Coordinated by Sylvia Ullmo, President of Société d’Etudes Nord Américaines (SENA). Université Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris III.

●January 16, 2009 Mairie Du 5e. Pont-Blanc Raconte and France Patchwork Paris
Remarks to a group of women present for a workshop on making quilts. Also sat through film screening of “A Portrait of the Artist.”

●January 16, 2009 Suger High School, Saint-Denis
“The Civil Rights Movement and the Legacy of Rosa Parks.” Discussed the history of Rosa Parks, and encounter with the history at St. Jude Educational Institute and recited a dramatic poem in three voices (Parks, the bus driver, speaker) I wrote honoring Parks at age 17 when a senior there, entitled “Together We Will Win,” which won an award in a citywide poetry contest. Discussed the legacy of the Lowndes County Freedom Organization and my research on it, noting my first encounter with this history when viewing Eyes on the Prize in American history class as an eleventh grader at St. Jude.

●January 16 Bondy Blog, Bondy
●Interviewed on site in Bondy office in juxtaposition with the Obama quilt by one of the Bondy Blog co- founders. Bondy Blog was the first media source to report on the unrest in the suburbs of Paris in the fall of 2005, and has served as a major resource for international print and news media. Interviewed on Obama and asked numerous questions, including whether Obama would be able to live up to his campaign promises, whether he would be seriously committed to issues of foreign policy, how Americans were responding to the election, whether I thought Obama’s popularity mainly had to do with disappointment with the administration of President George W. Bush, and whether Obama and Hillary Clinton would be able to put aside their old rivalries and effectively work together. Responses translated by Randiane Peccoud from the U.S. Embassy. Later, nineteen bloggers from Bondy arrived to screen the film “A Portrait of the Artist” and asked questions of their own for several hours. Translated and coordinated by Randiane Peccoud and Sophie Nadeau from the Cultural Affairs Office at the US Embassy.