“African American artists have used art to preserve history and community memory as well as for empowerment. Artistic and cultural movements such as the New Negro, Black Arts, Black Renaissance, hip-hop, and Afrofuturism, have been led by people of African descent and set the standard for popular trends around the world.”
-Association for the Study of African
In line with long-established Black artistic and cultural movements, Black Renaissance features eight artists who live and work in Southern California, and who personify and offer reflections on the 2024 Black History Month theme, African Americans, and the Arts.
United by a common interest in creating figurative compositions, their work exemplifies a wide range of singular styles within this artistic tendency. Through painting, collage, and other mediums, these artworks draw attention to the ways in which individual perspectives create diverse forms of representing Black identity, life, and love within a shared cultural community.
Black Renaissance is a joint exhibition in partnership with the Palm Springs Black History Committee. It is part of an annual collaboration to highlight Black art and to provide educational opportunities about history and examines the 2024 national Black History Month theme: African Americans and the Arts with a spotlight on the Harlem Renaissance.
The museum thanks members of the Palm Springs Black History Committee, and the exhibiting artists who have made this exhibition possible. Palm Springs Art Museum’s Education Program is generously supported by The Helzel Family Foundation, and The City of Palm Springs.