FREEDOM Art Exhibition

An Art Exhibition Commemorating Juneteenth. FREEDOM is brought to you by Black in Mayberry, in partnership with ESMoA.

Dates: June 16 – Jun 23, 2024
Location: 910 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice, CA 90291

OUR-STORY

Brought to the Americas in chains, were people stolen from their land, torn from the arms of loved ones and separated from their identities. This torment would last from 1619 to 1865. During this time, they suffered under heinous acts of violence, inconceivably brutal conditions, and psychological torture and manipulation that would last centuries.

As their oppressors attempted to break their mind, body and spirit, what could not be taken from them was the ethos of Africa. Even while their bodies ached and bones grew tired, they set their gaze forward and they refused to die. As they continuously made something out of the nothing they were given, they would create a new world. Their hands turned their sweat and their blood into the soil as they laid the foundations of what would become America; each brick stacked on top of Black bodies, ingenuity, history and culture.

JUNETEENTH

Finally, on January 1, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, officially abolishing slavery in Confederate states. Yet, word had not reached enslaved African-Americans in Texas until June 19, 1865 when Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas. There, he issued General Order No. 3, announcing the emancipation of enslaved African Americans in Texas. Juneteenth, as it came to be known, commemorates this day and is celebrated as the end of slavery in the United States. Commonly known as Freedom Day.

WHAT TO EXPECT

FREEDOM is an exhibition that reflects on the African-American journey toward freedom, past, present and future. Lamenting the lives lost in the struggle towards freedom and honoring those who fought for us to hold the freedoms we have today. We celebrate Juneteenth with joy and with art in this exhibition showcasing perspectives on freedom by Black artists.

Twelve of Los Angeles’ finest Black artists come together to explore the concept of freedom through their artwork, each offering a unique perspective. Through their art, they raise poignant questions and give cause to reflect on what freedom means in present day terms.

Today as African-Americans continue to suffer mass incarceration, police brutality, red lining, unequal school systems, and intersections that extend beyond us, we beg to ask the questions “What is freedom?” and “Are we truly free?” Whether it be the confinements of internalized racism or systemic racism, we must ask ourselves if we are still bound by chains that compromise our freedoms be they physical or psychological.

FREEDOM is a thought-provoking exhibition that invites you to contemplate these questions as you gaze on stunning works of art that celebrate the resilience, strength, and beauty of the African American experience. Join us in honoring Juneteenth and reflecting on the ongoing pursuit of true freedom for all.

WHO ARE WE?

Black in Mayberry
Black in Mayberry is a nonprofit organization with the mission to combat racism through the art. We are at the intersection where art meets activism and we create and implement artistic programs, projects and events that address systemic racism and anti-blackness in new and innovative ways that encourage engagement, solidify intentionality and inspire action.
www.blackinmayberry.org

ESMoA
It is ESMoA’s mission to act as a catalyst for creative thinking with a focus on experimental exhibitions, community engagement, and arts education. Defined as an Experimental Museum rather than a traditional one, ESMoA is a provocative, fresh, and agile partner in the community, seeking to recalibrate rules of understanding, knowing, and doing through the arts.
www.ESMoA.org

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