Tasanee Durrett

Tasanee Durrett (b. 1994) is a Chicago-born architect and abstract figurative artist whose mixed-media paintings and sculptures explore ethnobotany, identity, and healing within the Black Diaspora. Drawing on her B.Arch from the University of Arizona, she merges architectural precision with deeply personal narratives. Painting became a medium of liberation in 2022, reclaiming her voice after surviving an eight-year abusive relationship. Her work has been exhibited nationally, including at the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago, Orlando Museum of Art, Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, Art Basel Miami, and EXPO Chicago. Now based in Central Florida, Durrett continues to create as a platform for amplifying marginalized voices and fostering collective healing.

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Mohamed Gabriel

Mohamed Gabriel is a Sudanese-American photographer based in Seattle. His work explores themes of connection, culture, and everyday beauty through candid moments and thoughtful composition. With a background rooted in community storytelling, his lens highlights human presence — whether in bustling city streets, quiet studio sessions, or coastal villages across the globe. His photographs invite viewers to pause, feel, and reflect, blurring the line between documentary and fine art. Mohamed continues to celebrate life’s fleeting details and amplify underrepresented narratives in both local and international spaces.

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Conya Gilmore

Conya Gilmore is a storyteller, artist, and herbal advocate for the healing power of nature and creativity. Raised in Bedford, Virginia, with the Blue Ridge Mountains as her backdrop, she developed a deep connection to the land and its rhythms. Now based in Richmond, Virginia, she continues to draw inspiration from the natural world and the rich tapestry of her heritage. Blending embroidery and quilting, Conya creates narrative works that honor the resilience, beauty, and wisdom of those who came before her. Her art explores the intersections of history, identity, and nature—weaving together threads of memory, resilience, and hope.

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B. Curtis Grayson III
B. Curtis Grayson III discovered his passion for art at an early age, inspired by everything from his first crayon to watching Good Times and learning that the show’s paintings were by Ernie Barnes. Guided by his faith and dedication, he has spent more than 25 years as a professional artist and art educator, exhibiting widely across the U.S. and abroad.

 

Grayson is best known for his celebrated “Revelations Series,” inspired by Alvin Ailey’s signature dance work. His piece Dance of August appeared in HBO’s Disappearing Acts, and his art has been featured in major projects such as McDonald’s 365 Black History campaign, the film The Best Man Holiday, and the 15th Annual African Cuban Bienal in Havana, Cuba.

 

Working in oils, acrylics, watercolor, collage, and mixed media, Grayson is drawn to bold, brilliant hues that radiate energy and emotion. His vibrant, conceptual works continue to inspire collectors and audiences alike, cementing his place as a powerful creative voice in contemporary art.

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Akwasi Gyambibi

Akwasi Gyambibi is a Ghanaian-born artist whose compositions explore universal themes of culture, race, politics, and religion. “Life inspires what I depict,” he says. “The wood surface is where I express my deepest emotions, thoughts, and experiences.” Working freehand with controlled applications of fire from a torch or heat gun, Gyambibi creates textured surfaces that he often embellishes with materials such as tapestry, wallpaper, ornaments, and acrylic paint. His style transforms raw wood into something beautiful and healing, offering viewers moments of

reflection and respite.

 

Born and raised in Tema, Ghana, and now based in Queens, New York, Gyambibi discovered his passion for art in childhood through drawing and painting—an activity that brought him pure joy. His work has been exhibited in Ghana, London, Dubai, and across New York, and he seeks to create connections with viewers that transcend the surface of the wood itself.

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Vandorn Hinnant

Vandorn Hinnant, born in Greensboro, NC, earned his BA in Art Design from North Carolina A&T State University in 1981 and briefly studied sculpture at UNC–Greensboro. A 1993–1994 NC Arts Council Artist Fellowship recipient, he has held residencies at The Hambidge Center for the Arts and Sciences, Project Row Houses, Penland School of Crafts, the Center for Design Innovation, the National Arts Education Association, and the Brandywine Workshop. Hinnant’s work has been widely exhibited, with numerous public art commissions and inclusion in public, private, and museum collections. He views his purpose as a creative to inspire others to live fully engaged with the creative response.

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Bonnie Hopper

Bonnie Hopper is a Seattle-born artist whose striking oil portraits—primarily of Black women—celebrate beauty, pride, and dignity. After early studies in advertising art at Seattle Community College, life pulled her away from painting until 2008, when an unexpected portrait commission reignited her practice. Blending 15th-century techniques of Van Eyck and Titian with modern materials like Yupo paper, African textiles, and resin, Hopper bridges centuries of art, creating tactile works rich in texture and story. A member of Onyx Fine Arts Collective, her work has been featured in Truth B Told at King Street Station and earned her a Gallery 110 Emerging Artist Scholarship in 2022.

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Mel Isidor

Mel is a designer, urban planner, and mixed-media artist based between Seattle, WA, and Boston, MA. Her creative spirit stems from a fascination with the built environment—seeking to unpack how our urban fabric reflects people and culture.

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Through her art, she seeks to create compositions that evoke elements of dynamism, nostalgia, and imagination to culminate into works that transcend temporal and spatial boundaries. By blending the realism of photography with the abstraction of collage her creations physically and metaphorically layer time and space. Mel leads her own consultancy [Isidor Studio], exploring the intersections of art, design, and urbanism. Her passions lie in work that connects multiple mediums and methodologies—including photography, ethnographic research, graphic design, web design, mapping, and illustration.

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Narus Jefferson - N. Carlos J.

N. Carlos J is a Brooklyn-born urban contemporary artist whose work blends traditional techniques with modern urban aesthetics to explore identity, community, and spirituality. Drawing inspiration from street art, hip-hop culture, and the human experience, he creates vibrant, symbolic pieces that invite reflection and connection. His immersive installations often incorporate found objects, graffiti, and organic materials, transforming urban spaces into meditative environments. Dedicated to community engagement, Carlos leads workshops and collaborative projects that empower youth and foster creativity. As a principal mural artist, his work has been commissioned by Publix Supermarkets, Hi-Arts NYC, Macon Arts Alliance, Burlington Arts Council, Groundswell Mural, and The Boys and Girls Club of Long Island City.

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Symonne Larison-Jones

Symonne Larison-Jones was born in Portland, Oregon, and currently resides in Seattle. As a portrait artist, Larison specializes in acrylic on canvas, with a focus on large canvas monochromatic portraits. She is best known for her striking use of vibrant colors and her ability to paint strong, high-contrast portraits of compelling subjects. Larison-Jones’s work is deeply rooted in the exploration of identity and representation. Her subject matter revolves around amplifying the diverse beauty of Black and brown individuals, aiming to create a sense of belonging and representation within her art for younger generations to inspire.

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Desmond McFarlane

Desmond McFarlane is a Jamaican-born, Chicago-based visual storyteller whose paintings, prints, and drawings weave memory, myth, and Afro-Caribbean heritage into vibrant meditations on identity and belonging. Rooted in bold color, rhythmic structure, and layered symbolism, his work honors tradition while exploring new visual languages. A graduate of Edna Manley College, the Maryland Institute College of Art, and Howard University, McFarlane continues to create, teach, and share stories that connect the personal to the universal.​​​​

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Najee Tobin

Najee Tobin is a photographic artist from Vallejo, CA, now based in Oakland. Working through portraiture, still life, and set design, he creates with an empathetic and imaginative lens. Inspired by artists such as Irving Penn, Dawoud Bey, and Awol Erizku, his work explores the human condition and the nuances within it, sparking honest, thoughtful conversations about what it means to exist.​​​​

 

Rubin Quarcoopome

Rubin Quarcoopome is driven by a love for affecting stories. From hearing his father’s mischievous Anansi tales in Ghana to absorbing anime and films in Detroit, stories have shaped how he connects with the world. Through photography and digital painting, he embraces Afrosurrealism—making the ordinary weird and the weird ordinary—while centering Black narratives and creating space for other BIPOC artists to thrive. Now based in Seattle, Rubin continues to refine his craft, exploring complex visual stories and expanding his creative practice through exhibitions, residencies, and collaborative projects.