Starry Crown: Art of #BlackGirlMagic

Hampton Art Lovers presents a curated installation that celebrates the Art of #BlackGirlMagic with portraiture and sculptures of African-American women featuring the art of Elizabeth Catlett, Samella Lewis, Faith Ringgold, Ruth Carter, John Biggers, Basil Watson, Barkley Hendricks, others. This show highlights selections from Ebony Broadsides (works on paper) and the Florida Memorial Collection.

“Starry Crown” is a reference found in old negro spirituals. “Starry Crown” is the figurative reward received when baptized and the song also has a coded messages. for the underground railroad. When the enslaved escaped to frreedom on the undergroaund railroad, they would walk in the river because the water would cover their scent from the bounty-hunters' dogs and navigated their escape using the stars.

Black women have navigated these rivers from the front-line in the fight for equality in America. Although their contributions were sometimes overlooked in both the Civil Rights and Women’s Movements, their power, resilience, and courage cannot be overstated. The portraiture within the exhibition represents showcasesthe “Starry Crown” of women connected by a spirit that spans several generations. Each work is a piece of that story, through which we gain a better understanding of the humanity the enjoins us all.

Portraiture is a very old art form going back at least to ancient Egypt, where it flourished from about 5,000 years ago. Before the invention of photography, a painted, sculpted, or drawn portrait was the only way to record the appearance of someone. But portraits have always been more than just a record. They have been used to show the power, importance, virtue, beauty, wealth, taste, learning or other qualities of the sitter. In 1773, Phillis Wheatley became the first African-American to publish a book. But almost just as important, when her book of poetry, “Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral” appeared, she was the first woman in colonial America to have her portrait printed with her writings. Despite the times, and her bondage, Wheatley shined her “starry crown”, one of the foundational moments of what would later become #BlackGirlMagic.

#BlackGirlMagic isn’t just a trending hashtag or catchphrase, it’s a real-time, quantifiable illustration of Power. According to Nielsen, African-American women drove total Black spending power toward a record $1.6 trillion in 2021. This rise in influence and buying power is a result of their increased success in income, business, and careers. The number of Black women-owned businesses increased by 67% between 2007 and 2012, compared to 27% for all women. #BlackGirlMagic is a social and political phenomenon of the modern moment, it emerged on Twitter in 2012 as a collective for Black women and girls to celebrate who they are, honor achievement, beauty and strength. The hashtag gained traction by arming them with the full use of the technological tools of the time. #BlackGirlMagic is part of an emerging sphere of social experiences where thoughts and ideas, communicated via a hashtag, and act as a catalyst for building community. The concept is important because it names and identifies the ways that Black women make space for themselves, celebrate themselves, and connect to each other. In 2016, Beyoncé's song "Formation," a love letter to her Blackness, catapulted #blackgirlmagic posts on social media to new heights. For many generations the Black woman archetype focused on the mourning Black woman who suffers in silence. #BlackGirlMagic emerges as a counter narrative, where Black women are setting the standard for themselves, choosing to see something magical in their womanhood.

Hampton Art Lovers dedicates the show to the “Starry Crown” worn by Miami native Ketanji Brown Jackson, we dedicate this show and honor her nomination for the 116th Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. She is a product of Miami- Dade Public Schools where both her parents served as educators. Her father, Johnny Brown, rose to be the School Board Attorney for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. While her mother, Ellery Brown, became the Principal of New World School of the Arts. When Ketanji Brown Jackson is confirmed, she will be the first African-American women Supreme Court Justice. Hampton Art Lovers honors this historic moment in American (and Miami) History by dedicating “Starry Crown” to Ketanji BrownJackson and her parents Johnny Brown & Ellery Brown.