Private Invitation to Share or Show Work for Juneteenth
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Dear Artists and Collectors:
You’ve been directed to this hidden web page because you are known to me or have been referred by someone I trust. We believe you have a role to play in furthering the work of Black artists via a show celebrating Juneteenth. You're being invited to show works you own or created.
The opening is June 18th, 7PM-11PM with a brief program at 7:30.
The art show is a key part of a Juneteenth reception and open house that is produced by Reggie Gibbs (aka Coach Gibbs) the new leader of Festivals of Art/Thought/Culture. The Juneteenth celebration is open to all who want to honor the day and learn more about it.
The show is for regional Black artists who would like to sell their work, and also to show works loaned by art lovers who are proud of Black artists in their collections. This is a non-traditional combination: we want to reinforce the notion that Black artists could be in everyone’s collections, and to tap into everyone’s curiosity to see art works that are not often — if ever — in public view. Collectors loaning us works should send us art they love and should consider boosting the visibility of living artists who are working for a living.
For Black artists in our midst: we want to show works you're proud of and that people may want to buy. If you’ve been invited to this page, it means we like your work already and want you in the show. We can hang art you’ve shown before; at least half this audience will not have seen it yet, and we want you to show off your skill, perspective, and creative voice. The Fruit is organizing this art show and staffing it. Art is being sold on a commission-free basis, and we’re providing modest subsidies to some artists to help defray the expense of participating.
Submissions and more details are found here on the public invitation.
Why the Fruit? Why now? The Fruit has partnered with the Festivals of Art/Thought/Culture (ATC) to host three-day festivals around every Third Friday, Durham’s traditional art walk. ATC and the Fruit hope to help grow and diversify the audience that typically comes out for Third Friday, and to remind patrons to “head east” of the downtown core. The Festivals of ATC will include fashion, networking, comedy, education, lots of music, and dancing into the night. ATC’s leader, Coach Gibbs, is an entrepreneur, one of whose ventures was a large event space in RTP that he sunset in January 2020. He offered much of the venue's capacities to the Fruit in the spirit of partnership, providing us with three incredible sound systems, theater lighting, and know-how. As important, he’s bringing his love of gospel music and his networks, energy and creative spirit. Both Gibbs and I are committed to having fun, building stronger networks among diverse groups in our community, and finding a sustainable way to support arts and culture in Durham.
If you’re considering bringing your art to the Fruit but aren’t familiar with us, the Fruit has hosted some high-art and "people’s art" events, from world-class artists such as Zanele Muholi to Jasmyn Milan’s art-riot “Bad Kitty” show, the first of which featured wild fashion shows and glowing graffiti on plastic sheets in the basement. Your works can be listed on our arts insurance policy, we are climate-controlled, have a security system, and the works will be monitored when open to the public.
On a personal note about curation, this show is influenced by Dr. Albert Barnes. He built a collection valued in the billions, in part focusing on decorative ironwork, African art, and modern European paintings all of which he hung tightly together in his large gallery outside Philadelphia. In his will, he signed over control of the collection to the trustees of America’s first historically Black university. Among the guidance he left, he reportedly said he’d prefer school children have access to his collection over PhD candidates. So, although I’m not a fan of little kids running around the Fruit, I do expect you share the point that everyone ought to have a journey in the arts.
Questions are welcome to me or JoRose Burwell who is curating the show with me at ArtAtFruit@gmail.com.
Best wishes,
-Tim Walter-
Dear Artists and Collectors:
You’ve been directed to this hidden web page because you are known to me or have been referred by someone I trust. We believe you have a role to play in furthering the work of Black artists via a show celebrating Juneteenth. You're being invited to show works you own or created.
The opening is June 18th, 7PM-11PM with a brief program at 7:30.
The art show is a key part of a Juneteenth reception and open house that is produced by Reggie Gibbs (aka Coach Gibbs) the new leader of Festivals of Art/Thought/Culture. The Juneteenth celebration is open to all who want to honor the day and learn more about it.
The show is for regional Black artists who would like to sell their work, and also to show works loaned by art lovers who are proud of Black artists in their collections. This is a non-traditional combination: we want to reinforce the notion that Black artists could be in everyone’s collections, and to tap into everyone’s curiosity to see art works that are not often — if ever — in public view. Collectors loaning us works should send us art they love and should consider boosting the visibility of living artists who are working for a living.
For Black artists in our midst: we want to show works you're proud of and that people may want to buy. If you’ve been invited to this page, it means we like your work already and want you in the show. We can hang art you’ve shown before; at least half this audience will not have seen it yet, and we want you to show off your skill, perspective, and creative voice. The Fruit is organizing this art show and staffing it. Art is being sold on a commission-free basis, and we’re providing modest subsidies to some artists to help defray the expense of participating.
Submissions and more details are found here on the public invitation.
Why the Fruit? Why now? The Fruit has partnered with the Festivals of Art/Thought/Culture (ATC) to host three-day festivals around every Third Friday, Durham’s traditional art walk. ATC and the Fruit hope to help grow and diversify the audience that typically comes out for Third Friday, and to remind patrons to “head east” of the downtown core. The Festivals of ATC will include fashion, networking, comedy, education, lots of music, and dancing into the night. ATC’s leader, Coach Gibbs, is an entrepreneur, one of whose ventures was a large event space in RTP that he sunset in January 2020. He offered much of the venue's capacities to the Fruit in the spirit of partnership, providing us with three incredible sound systems, theater lighting, and know-how. As important, he’s bringing his love of gospel music and his networks, energy and creative spirit. Both Gibbs and I are committed to having fun, building stronger networks among diverse groups in our community, and finding a sustainable way to support arts and culture in Durham.
If you’re considering bringing your art to the Fruit but aren’t familiar with us, the Fruit has hosted some high-art and "people’s art" events, from world-class artists such as Zanele Muholi to Jasmyn Milan’s art-riot “Bad Kitty” show, the first of which featured wild fashion shows and glowing graffiti on plastic sheets in the basement. Your works can be listed on our arts insurance policy, we are climate-controlled, have a security system, and the works will be monitored when open to the public.
On a personal note about curation, this show is influenced by Dr. Albert Barnes. He built a collection valued in the billions, in part focusing on decorative ironwork, African art, and modern European paintings all of which he hung tightly together in his large gallery outside Philadelphia. In his will, he signed over control of the collection to the trustees of America’s first historically Black university. Among the guidance he left, he reportedly said he’d prefer school children have access to his collection over PhD candidates. So, although I’m not a fan of little kids running around the Fruit, I do expect you share the point that everyone ought to have a journey in the arts.
Questions are welcome to me or JoRose Burwell who is curating the show with me at ArtAtFruit@gmail.com.
Best wishes,
-Tim Walter-