Anita Easterwood, Ascension
Our Voices Our Truth … in Peace is a breathtaking showcase of artwork from members of the African American Artists Collective, curated by the organization’s executive director and co-founder Sonié Joi Thompson-Ruffin.
Housed in the historic Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center, the exhibit features artworks by roughly two dozen artists covering a wide range of mediums and practices. From a stunning pentaptych by Michael V. Toombs to hand-embellished sneakers by Glenn North, accompanied with the poem I Be Black, the exhibit is a buffet of Black artistic expression, capturing the essence of the broad and diverse spectrum of what we call “The Black Experience.”
The closing words of North’s poem capture the essence of this exhibition: unapologetic American Blackness:
I be Black
Like Mississippi catfish breaded
and deep fried
I’m so Black
I’m Black
I’m Black on both sides.
Throughout the exhibit, vibrant and explosive colors, images, textures and juxtapositions speak to the strength, resilience, and enduring spirit of what it means to be Black in America.
For 7 Generations, a 22” x 27” textile work by NeDra Patton Bonds, retired teacher and quilter, is a complex and moving depiction of a melanated person holding an American flag, folded over just enough to show the Blackness which backs it. The use of various African patterns expresses cultural unity through shared experience.
Amerikkka… Dr. Jekyll Mr. Hyde, a written work by poet and activist Huey Freedman aka Arthur X, begins with the words “The journey from slavery to freedom, had peaks & valleys, highs & lows. When we stood for progress, violent acts showed us getting hosed.” This unmitigated speaking to power is a recurring motif in this exhibition, exemplifying, not just the spirit of the exhibition as a whole, but the spirit found in each individual work.
Ascension, a 12” x 16” oil painting by Anita Easterwood is a tender reflection upon the journey from darkness to light, both collective and individual, that is a component of the Black experience. She portrays a Black woman, her eyes fixed and her face determined, looking upwards and onwards into the light shining onto her face. The light illuminates and bounces from her melanin brown skin and through her braided hair. There is a brightness in her eyes from beholding a vision of a brighter future. She is unfettered, unbossed, unbothered and unstoppable.
“This exhibition invites people to slow down, to listen, and to recognize that truth does not require aggression to be powerful,” said Thompson-Ruffin My hope is that visitors carry forward a renewed respect for art as a space where honesty, dignity, and peace can coexist without compromise — especially in times that demand courage, accountability and care.”
Our Voices Our Truth … In Peace continues at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center, 3700 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. through April 10. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday- Saturday. For more information, 816.513.0700 or www.brucewatkinscenter.com.
