Dear Black Artist

Join us for a screening of Dear Black Artist in conjunction with our exhibition, The United Colors of Robert Earl Paige. Dear Black Artist is a documentary project that began right before the pandemic and highlights 77 Black artists as an ode to the 77 communities in Chicago. In the documentary, the artists discuss their creative journeys, barriers to access, and their greatest hopes for Black artists in the future to give the viewer a snapshot of multigenerational perspectives and ideas around what success and access for Black artists looks like in Chicago. There will be a post film discussion with featured artists, Shani Crowe and Shyvette Williams moderated by the film’s creator, Rachel Gadson.

About The Filmmaker: Rachel Gadson

Rachel Gadson was born and raised on the southside of Chicago. She has a strong attachment to the creative arts community and is a proud Chicagoan. She attended Florida A&M University where she attained her Bachelors in the field of Graphic Design (magna cum laude); and also studied design, photography, and animation at Studio Arts Center International, in Florence, Italy.

A combination of love for the creative arts industry, and a keen desire to empower artists (specifically artists of color) shapes the trajectory of Rachel’s career and it’s the same fire that keeps her propelling toward her goals. With a portfolio that spans across varying industries with clients like Jewel Osco, PNC Bank, Hilton, Samsung, and GitHub, Gadson now dedicates her time creating equitable access for more Black artists.

Through her work, she seeks to expand the narrative of how we begin to create more inclusive environments where the talents and works of Black artists are more visible, and the appreciation and love of our art is highly regarded.

About Shani Crowe:

Shani Crowe is an interdisciplinary artist who received her BFA in film production from Howard University’s John H. Johnson School of Communications in 2011. Her work centers on cultural coiffure, adornment and beauty ritual, as they relate to the diasporic African, and how these practices function as tools to foster connectivity. She is most known for creating intricate corn-rowed hairstyles, then capturing them as large photographic portraits.Shani also uses hair and hair related material to create structures and installations.

Shani is part of the ensemble selected to represent the US in the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale, her work and performances have been featured at the Broad in Los Angeles, on Saturday Night Live in collaboration with Solange Knowles, the Museum of Contemporary African and Diasporan Art (MoCADA), in Brooklyn, NY, the Urban Institute of Contemporary Art, in Grand Rapids, MI, Columbia University, and Soho House Chicago. She lives and works on Chicago’s south side.

About Shyvette Williams:

Shyvette Williams’s early talents blossomed in Chicago, where Shyvette was nurtured through the Chicago Public Schools System. She was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. As a young adult, she received scholarships to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to study fashion illustration. Her diverse experiences, including runway modeling, theater costume design, book illustration, painting, and extensive international travel, contribute to the complexity of her art. Runway modeling offered an opportunity to experience the continental art scene firsthand. Some of her many exhibitions in Chicago include Nicole Gallery, the South Side Community Art Center, A.R.C. Gallery, Woman Made Gallery 2012, The University of Illinois, Prairie State College, Little Black Pearl, and Urban Traditions. She has also exhibited at Gordon Robichaux Gallery, New York, NY, 2019; Aurora University, Aurora, IL; Noyes Cultural Art Center, Evanston, IL.; and The Bridgeport Art Center, 2022.

Her publications include Literati Internazionale, 1991; A Sound Investment, Sonia Sanchez, 1993; The Chicago Art Scene, 2000; African Art: The Diaspora and Beyond, Daniel T. Parker, 2004; WGCI- AM/FM calendar, Diasporal Rhythms A 10-year love affair with collecting catalog 2013, Hyde Park Art Center catalog Not Just Another Pretty Face 2010-13 -16-19. The Sapphire & Crystals FORWARD exhibition catalog 2022. Also, Sapphire and Crystals Freedoms Muse catalogue 2023. Shyvette was one of the featured artists in the 2018 award-winning documentary The Color of Art by filmmaker David Weathersby.