Ancestral Shadows Artist’s Statement Ancestral Shadows I, II and III are part of a series I created as an homage to the collections of the now-closed Dapper Museum in Paris where figurative art carvings of the Dogon people from Burkina Faso and Mali in West Africa were exhibited. The Dapper was a special place in Paris for us.
When we learned of the impending closure of the museum, we visited one last time in the summer of 2017. Creating memories of the Dapper and its exhibitions by directly photographing the artwork felt uninspired and inappropriate. I decided to capture the essence of the work by photographing shadows they cast upon the walls and floors of the space. Using shadows as the main subjects, I created unique images that interpret the essence of Musée Dapper and the Dogon collection.
Biography Gene Dominique lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Gene’s explorations in photography include a deep dive into a variety of genres including documentary, abstract, still-life and portraiture. He has exhibited around the Bay Area and internationally. His current work includes the long-term documentary series called Still Here – African American Farmers in the 21st Century, which is a study of the contemporary life of Black farmers.
Volunteerism is an important part of Gene’s art practice. In 2016 he founded CameraAngels, a donation program that solicits used cameras and related gear for young people in the Bay Area. Gene serves on the board of directors of San Francisco Camerawork.
Gene says he frequently returns to a quote by the photojournalist Gordon Parks for inspiration: “You know, the camera is not meant just to show misery.”
More info: Gene Dominique is a photographer and master printer. All of his original works are created in editions of five. For more information, commissions and purchases contact Mr. Dominique at GeneDominiquePhotography@gmail.com.
About: Andrea McCoy Harvey received her formal art training at the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff an HBCU, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Art Education in 1995. She is obtaining a Masters Degree in Fine Arts at the Academy of Art San Francisco. Andrea is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and a Public School Art Teacher for Emery Unified School District. Andrea’s Art teaching experience has been her primary career for over twenty two years. She has taught grade levels K-12. Andrea is an emerging new Artist that brings a powerful message with her Art. Andrea’s portrait series delivers a commanding statement for women of color and women empowerment.
Andrea McCoy Harvey’s most recent exhibitions are located in Northern California. Andrea’s art work was chosen out of 12,000 submissions by the de Young Museum in San Francisco to exhibit her work in the de Young Open Exhibition. Andrea has shown her work at The Abrams Claghorn Gallery in Albany, Ca., The Impact Hub, Oakland, Ca., The Booker T. Washington Community Center San Francisco, Square Head Qtrs, San Francisco, FaceBook Head Qtrs Menlo Park, Richmond Art Center and The District Oakland Wine Bar. Andrea has also recently opened her own art studio in Emeryville that will allow children and adults to create, explore and enjoy their interest for the visual arts. She offers art classes for children, summer art camps and non profit organizations that are looking to incorporate art into their programs.
More info: If you are interested in purchasing original works of art or giclee prints please email me at artbyandrea4@gmail.com or go to my website to click on my online store.
“Slice of Life”, February 9 – March 5, 2021 (in-person show) San Francisco Woman Art Gallery 2021 – San Francisco, CA https://sfwagallery.square.site/shop/64
“Black History Month Exhibit”, February 11 – March 1, 2021 (in-person show) Pottery Barn, 1436 Stoneridge Mall Rd e114, Pleasanton
About: Ron Calime is a photo artist and multi-disciplined CAD Design Drafter, who has worked on projects from the far reaches of space, and to the ocean’s abyss. From his use of a T-Square to the everyday usage of Computer Aided Design. He has learned what it means to capture “Moments in Time”, as a photo artist. By seeing colors, shapes, and movement that can only be captured and frozen in time.
Ron captures, clouds, reflections, colors, and movement. As an avid music fan, having played French horn, trumpet, and trombone, he sees colors in sound. Having an interest in the study of horology, Ron used the working of technology, engineering, and art to form the mechanism of tracking time, which helped him to evolve his creative intellect.
About: I am a lover of all things yarn, a crochet artist who creates wearable art inspired by the African Diaspora. I began my journey of crochet by sitting at the foot of my next door neighbor who created beautiful crocheted pieces with thread, I would watch her for hours. Crochet was my hobby while raising my two beautiful children Antoniya and David, then in 2010 DoubleTake Creations was born. My imagination and the love of African art influenced and guided my fingers and the passion grew. I was featured in the premier issues of Urban Style California and have participated in the Alameda Art Festival, Laurel Street World Fair, Festival at the Lake and Jack London Vendor Walk.
More info: You can contact me for special orders at doubletakecreations@rocketmail.com, on Instagram @doubletakecreations and Facebook at DoubleTake Creations.
Special events: A virtual satellite artist talk and exhibit is available on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/R5EEKDB1c2E
About:
JOHN B. BROUSSARD FINE ARTIST: DRAWINGS PAINTINGS SCULPTURE
John B. Broussard is a second generation native of Oakland California. He started drawing at age 7 after his family moved to a new neighborhood where he did not have any friends with which to play. Broussard describes Art as his “first love” because it provided an avenue through which he could occupy time and fill the void that would otherwise have been consumed playing with other children. One day his mother, the late Maybelle L. Broussard, was surprised to discover him drawing horses. After this discovery she exposed him to art making activities including a ceramics class at Mills College and a painting class at Mosswood Park. Largely self-taught, Broussard took two Special Art Classes at King Jr. High School and another art class at Bishop O’Dowd High School. More extensive exposure to studio art classes came many years later when he attended U.C. Berkeley as an Art major.
Excluding his time at U.C. Berkeley, Broussard’s most prolific art making activity occurred during his youth. There were protracted periods of time when he did very little art or none throughout his adult life. He had succumbed to the pressures of the work world which was generally not art related and very consuming. In 2018 Broussard retired from the field of education and then became immersed in doing art again. He is pleased to be able to participate in the Art of the African Diaspora this year as he continues art projects.
Frederick Douglass, Indigenous and The General (Harriet Tubman) sculptures are available for casting options (e.g. plaster, resin, and or bronze).
The General is the largest of the three busts measuring 24″h X 10.5″w X 12″d. (Note: A current photograph will become available after the mold is complete.)
For more information contact call: 510 778-1927 or email: brojoh123@comcast.net
About: I was born in Berkeley, CA. and raised in Oakland, CA. My uncle did art projects with me as a child and I was good with math. I was introduced to drafting, so I applied to U.C. Berkeley and graduated with a Masters Degree in Architecture. Now, I am a retiree from The Port of Oakland. While working at The Port of Oakland, it was suggested that I take some graphic design courses. That opened another door. Now I do some freelance work.
During my free time, I do ceramics and work with bamboo. I refer to my ceramics as “clay babies” and my bamboo art as “Ancestral Poles”. The ancestral poles can tell a story or be decorative. I am honored that my ceramics were published in Essence Magazine and San Francisco Business Times to name a few. And some of my work is in the private collections of Susan Taylor and Jill Scott.
We all feel something when we view art. It can range from feeling love, peace, racial issues, empowerment… Each piece has been inspired by someone or some event in my life. I try to translate that feeling, that experience into a visual for all to enjoy. My hope is that you feel it. This is my gift to you. From my spirit to yours.
About: “I go into a trance and create something beautiful”
I believe I was born to create, and for the past 15 years painting has been my passion.
Acrylic abstracts on canvas is my preference. I find my inspiration in nature, architecture, everyday objects and life itself. Sometimes there’s a specific image I want to create, other times I let the feeling take me wherever it wants to go. I love using bright colors, but also allow the piece itself to decide. Each piece has its own personality and energy.
I am honored to collaborate with some of the most talented artists in the Bay Area as part of the Art of the African Diaspora 2021.
More info: This link showcases my most recent work and gallery partnerships. You may contact me directly for promotional pricing specifically for the AOTAD exhibitions.
About: I create abstract figurative paintings using oil paints. I learned drawing and painting through classes at local community centers and online courses. While my work has been mostly portraiture and figurative, lately, I have been incorporating more abstraction. Currently, I am working on a series of figures (tentatively titled All Ways) to explore layers of emotion as a Black woman in predominantly white spaces. I have been comforted by poets and writers such as Audre Lorde and Lucille Clifton, and their words and love for Black women have inspired this series.
More info: This first image is part of my All Ways series. This series is a work in progress and explores themes like strength and vulnerability, loneliness and empowerment.
The second image is titled Daddy’s Jazz. I created this piece based on an image of John Coltrane as a commission. It is in a private collection.
About: Ashara Ekundayo is an independent curator, artist, creative industries entrepreneur and organizer working internationally across cultural, spiritual, civic, and social innovation spaces. Her intersectional worldview offers both an Afrofuturist and radical Black feminist framework to the public sector by centering the lives, traditions, and expertise of Black womxn of the African Diaspora.
As a social practice installation artist who designs site-specific commissioned altar pieces, documents justice uprisings, stewards public meditation ceremonies, and designs public printmaking sessions, Ashara’s works are intentionally collaborative, interdisciplinary, and intergenerational. Additionally, as an art buyer/advisor and gallerist, she has supported emerging and well-established artists and founded Omi Arts Project Space (2012-2017) inside her company Impact Hub Oakland, and the Ashara Ekundayo Gallery (2017-2019) which was celebrated as the only commercial gallery in the USA exclusively dedicated to the exhibition of work of Black womxn and femmes.
Currently, Ashara serves as Chief Creative Catalyst at the Bay Area Girls & Womxn of Color Collaborative and sits on the Advisory Board of the Oakland Public Conservatory of Music and the Regional Advisory Board for Arts Web Alameda County. Her newest creative projects include BLATANT – a multi-disciplinary, monthly forum presented in collaboration with the Museum of the African Diaspora as well as a published maga(zine) offered in conjunction with her platform Artist As First Responder which excavates, documents, and archives the stories of present-day and next generation cultural workers whose art practices heal communities and save lives. Ashara recently launched the Reflection Fund for Artist and is co-founder of Black [Space] Residency, a physical container for imagination, inquiry, activity and rest. Ashara.io
About: Brianna Mills is the founder and photographer of Visuals by Bri (VBB), a collection of her work, knowledge, and personal experiences. VBB strives to inspire and inform those who are embarking on their own career paths, while also providing tips, tricks, and a look into the beautiful difficulty of her solopreneurship journey. She intends to honestly capture and share as much of this world’s beauty as she can with others.
All images can be purchased on my website Shop page. Schedule a canvas consultation for a custom print/canvas order by emailing me at brianna@visualsbybri.com.
Images:
Mt Shasta, 2020, Digital Photograph She Surrenders, 2020, Digital Photograph Past the Horizon, 2020, Digital Photograph
