Photography: Ava Porter Words: Jessica Ritz The California African American Museum in Exposition Park south of downtown is not a quiet place on a weekday afternoon. In the the atrium lobby, the first piece visitors see is large-scale installation dominating the space by artist Gary Simmons. Names of silent films featuring African American casts rendered in blurring white traditional Courier-style font against black backgrounds serve as a critique of African-American erasure in popular culture. History Curator and Program Manager Tyree Boyd-Pates is heading towards the lobby through a hallway at a brisk pace when an older museum guest stops him to heap praise