In addition to providing 126 affordable apartments with ground floor commercial and community space, the seven-story Africatown Plaza building will be home to an art collection focused on healing, restoring and celebrating the citys Black and Pan-African communities. The permanent installation will feature African American and African Diaspora artists in over 20 different locations throughout the interior and exterior of the building.
The Call for Art invites artists of all mediums to submit proposals – including sculpture, painting, mixed media, integrated art, augmented reality and sound art. The Black-led, Central District based arts organization, Wa Na Wari, will co-curate the collection in collaboration with black-owned, architecture firm, DREAM Collaborative.
The selection committee seeks artwork that reflects upon the African-American presence in the Central District, past and present. Artists with a connection to the Central District are strongly encouraged to submit proposals.
“We need the genius of our local and global artists to help tell the stories of our journey; a lot of what has happened has been traumatic, so we need to build spaces of healing and restoration,” K. Wyking Garrett, Africatown Community Land Trust President and Chief Executive Officer said.
“Africatown is about maintaining and developing space where the beauty, brilliance and best of the Black experience can grow and thrive,” Garrett stated.
The deadline for entries is May 14, 2021. For more information and submissions guidelines, please visit www.africatownplaza.com
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