Join our celebration of the African Heritage Month and The Congressional Black Caucus as we reflect upon the work of contemporary Africa and African American artists. Ibou N’Diaye, a Mali native, constructs his breathtaking and detailed wood sculptures using traditional hand tools. Doba Afolabi, from Nigeria, expresses movement with bright colors that jump off the canvas and show the energy and movement of his culture.

Chris Malone creates his own narrative through a progression of multimedia sculptures, spirit dolls, and mosaics, largely influenced by West African design and traditional folklore. Akili Ron Anderson utilizes his African roots to provide a platform for highlighting the beauty and majesty and depth of his culture. Curtis Woody, Preston Sampson, Robert Freeman, and Anne Bouie, all D.C. natives, cast their eyes on Black American culture and spirituality. Woody’s dynamic quilt paintings collage the often-overlooked history and influence black culture has had on American culture. Sampson uses didactic color to emote the lives of African Americans, and doesn’t shy away his subjects from looking out to the viewer.

Freeman creates intimate moments in black social life in tandem with D.C. celebrity. Bouie assembles found objects to create relics reminiscent of the marginalized and forgotten. Hubert Jackson and Mason Archie are influenced by black history, creating an emotional appeal to our pathos, ethos, and logos. Jackson uses rich color and found objects from Virginia and Maryland Civil War battlegrounds to illustrate the true cost of war, and the role African Americans played. Archie, a classical realist, paints scenery significant to black history, giving light to the lesser-known historical spots. Carolyn Goodridge and Bernie Houston are aesthetically motivated. Goodridge uses organic encaustic on glass and panels to create images both sublime and fantastic. Houston draws inspiration from nature, creating small wonders of painted driftwood, finished in wax.

Kristine Mays and William Buchanan, both previously featured in our juried show “RESIST,” are our newest additions to Zenith Gallery. Mays creates wire sculpture to capture the human form to reflect upon what is within. Buchanan juxtaposes gentle creatures and man-made bombs to illustrate the destruction power of war. Together, this dynamic and diverse group of artists creates a backdrop for the arrival of the African Heritage Month and the Congressional Black Caucus, whose job it is to inspire change and hope.