Very few people can tell their parents, “Come see yourself in a museum.”
But that is a reality for Chicago artist Ornella Bayigamba, 25, who depicted her mother and a younger version of her father in two separate oil paintings on view at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry.
Her art also resonates with people outside of her family.
“So many people have said, ‘This looks like my mother. This looks like my grandmother,'” said Bayigamba, whose paintings are titled “Heart Full of Poppies” and “Why Won’t the Caged Bird Sing.”
“And then, suddenly, they put themselves in the piece, and they’re able to relate and engage.”
By attending the 55th Black Creativity Juried Art Exhibition, Black patrons will see themselves represented in Bayigamba’s works and more than 100 other pieces through April 27. The event is part of the museum’s annual Black Creativity program, which highlights achievements by African Americans in science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics. The art show and other scheduled educational activities reach more than 10,000 students, along with their teachers and families, each year.
The exhibition showcases paintings, sculptures, mixed media and more by both local teens, as well as professional and emerging adult artists from Chicago and throughout the country.
It is billed as the longest continuously running exhibit of Black art in the U.S.
Walking through the show, visitors will see Black people in myriad settings — resting, playing, worshiping, engaging with their communities, wearing cultural garb, etc.
Museum staffer Angela Williams praised the breadth of the Black experience on display.
“That’s important, particularly as it relates to kids and families, to see themselves in beautiful images,” said Williams, who is the director of design and creative services. “As a society, we are inundated with a lot of negative and just terrible things that happen to people of color and Black folks specifically.”
That isn’t to say there aren’t social justice messages in the exhibition. Standout pieces include Osei Agyeman-Badu’s painted doors featuring powerful images of Anjanette Young and Breonna Taylor, both victimized in their homes by police.
This year, the jury selected pieces from more than 1300 submissions. They also granted awards and honorable mentions to select works.
“I’m glad that this exhibit allows artists to share their work, tell their stories and have a spotlight,” said exhibiting photographer Nick Moody, 28, of the south suburbs, “because I know a lot of dope artists out there and they may not even get the experience.”
Titled “Old Heads,” Moody’s photo captures three older men watching Chicago’s Bud Billiken Parade.
“It speaks on the essence of Black Chicago, especially in Bronzeville,” Moody said of the piece. “You have a lot of elders that grew up and raised families in the area. And to see that they are still going strong and watching generations after them come along, it’s a beautiful thing.”
Exhibiting artist and musician Pugs Atomz also tells Chicago stories. Titled “Meet me at Dr. Wax,” his acrylic painting portrays a former Hyde Park record store that helped bolster his and others’ careers.
Atomz, 47, of Park Manor, said he was excited to be featured in his son’s “favorite museum.” He also praised the legacy of the exhibition, which has previously featured notable Chicago artists like Hebru Brantley and Richard Hunt.
“To be a part of that history and then to be next to so many great artists — I mean, walking through this exhibit, I was like, ‘Wow, there is some really good stuff here,'” Atomz said. “This is an impressive show.”
