On Friday, the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture opens a new exhibition titled “Becoming The Sea.” It features the works of twelve innovative artists from around the world, all of whom are participating in the “Black Rock Senegal” artist-in-residence program.
Founded in 2019 by renowned artist Kehinde Wiley, Rock is a multidisciplinary residency based in Dakar, Senegal. The residency brings artists together to live and work in Dakar to promote cultural exchange and artistic excellence.
The exhibition, Becoming The Sea, is a collection of paintings, photographs, tapestries and multimedia pieces inspired by the artists’ experiences in Dakar. Zoe Fortin, executive director of the Black Rock Global Arts Foundation, told QCity Metro that the pieces, like the organization, aim to change the way people see and think about Africa.
The organization’s website states that its goal is to “instigate a change in the global discourse about what Africa means today.”
The Charlotte exhibition is an important step toward that goal. Fortin said “Becoming The Sea” at the Gantt Center is Black Rock’s largest collaborative exhibition in the U.S. to date.
Bringing Dakar to Charlotte
The journey to bring “Becoming The Sea” to life began in 2020, when exhibition curator Dexter Wimberly was in Japan during the pandemic, where he connected with fellow artist Devin Johnson, one of Black Rock’s alumni. What initially began as a series of FaceTime conversations between two artists in different parts of the world evolved into a meaningful collaboration between the Gantt Center and Black Rock, Wimberly said.
Wimberly said many of the works are inspired by water, inadvertently creating a connection between the artists’ experiences.
“While the works were not specifically chosen for this reason, the connections to water and fluidity emerged naturally as we curated the exhibition,” he explained. “These artists have spent time in a place they may never have been before, and what they subsequently create reflects that unique journey.”
The close relationship between the artists and their surroundings is evident throughout the exhibition, such as in Nina Faustine’s collection of photographs taken at a historic site in Senegal. Faustine’s photos are colorful and can evoke different emotions in the viewer, Fortin said.
Fortin said each visitor will be presented with the artist’s experiences in Dakar in a unique way.
“I think the beauty of shows like this is that people can come with an open mind, without having to know anything specific about art. They can just enjoy the experience and discover new artists and their stories,” Wimberly said.
“Becoming The Sea” is intended to be a transformative experience that invites artists and art lovers of all kinds to participate. The exhibition will be on display from August 9 to January 20, 2025.
