We Are The Ones We've Been Waiting For

Feb 27, 2025 - March 2, 2025

The Columbia Art League as part of a residency with True/False Festival

An immersive sound installation and altar honoring my late father, centering the voices of Black fathers reading passages from radical Black thinkers, blending personal memory, cultural resistance, and historical texts with moments of whimsy to create a sanctuary for Black thought. While open to all, this work holds special significance for people of color navigating predominantly white spaces.

• Installation Elements: A peacock chair altar honoring my late father, surrounded by banned books, jazz music from my father’s collection, and dual-layered audio of Black fathers reading works by Angela Davis, June Jordan, and Assata Shakur.

• Visual Components:
  • Two paintings of my parents in a 1970s style inspired by artwork in my childhood home and two paintings featuring an Angela Davis quote.
  • A collage in the style of the 1980s READ posters featuring my family and banned books.
• Interactive Features:
  • A reading station where visitors can sit and engage with banned books.
  • Free bookmarks for visitors to take with them.
• Themes: Ancestry, Black fatherhood, intellectual legacy, banned literature, radical imagination.

• Materials: Sound, furniture, books, archival music, painting, mixed media.