Noah Davis has been a well-known name in art circles around the world. What is lesser known is that Davis was from Seattle, Washington. In 2016, the Frye Art Museum presented the first large-scale museum show that explored Davis’ work, alongside the work of his brother and fellow artist Khalil Joseph. The Frye exhibit was held just one year after Davis’ untimely passing from cancer at the age of thirty-two (b.1983- d.2015).
Noah's wife, Karon Davis, the daughter of the performer Ben Vereen, has in many ways, been lurking in the shadows of her much-recognized husband and father. But that was before. Her first solo exhibition last spring marked a major shift for the artist who has said that her husband Noah is the one who saw the artist in her that she could not see. The subject of her exhibit titled, "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished," was a reflection of the confluence between the Black Lives Matter Movement, and the Black Panther Movement. Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale was the central character in this exhibit; from the sculpture of a bound and gagged Seale at his Chicago trial, to the sculpted grocery bags of food illustrating the Panther free food program.
Karon and Noah founded the Underground Museum, an arts and culture center operating out of four converted storefronts in the Arlington Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, in 2012. The museum’s mission is, “To ensure that no one has to travel outside the neighborhood to see world-class art, or learn from leading thinkers, educators, chefs, and artists.” As Karon continues to lead the museum and manage her husband’s estate, she is leading her own way into her independence as an artist and arts leader.