January 15, 2023—I invite you to join in the celebration of the Harlem Fine Arts Show’s 15th Anniversary, which will be marked with a three-day cultural experience and festival in New York City, beginning February 24, 2023.
As a longtime Black art collector and supporter of HFAS, I believe it’s important for the readers of Arts & Culture Connections to know about this monumental event. It began in Harlem in 2009; the idea was to create the largest traveling exhibition of the works of artists from throughout the African diaspora to serve as a platform for their work to be seen and sold.
“HFAS prides itself on a sole tenet: creating economic empowerment, educational opportunities, and professional recognition for the artists in our shows,” said HFAS founder Dion Clarke. “These artists have been forced to make hard pivots in how they showcase and sell their work in the new-normal of a post-COVID-19 economy.
“However, the poignancy of their individual works is more important now than ever,” Mr. Clarke added. “This work, created by the African Diaspora, will tell the story of this unprecedented moment in history: the choices we made in this moment of historical change, and most importantly: how we felt.”
Debra Vanderburg Spencer is the curator of the 15th anniversary exhibition and festival, which has the theme “Celebrating Art and Culture in America.” Ms. Spencer is an award-winning and museum-trained curator and art historian, who has worked with the U.S. Congress; the Architect of the Capitol; the National Endowment for the Arts; the William J. Clinton Foundation, and the Romanian Cultural Institute in Bucharest, Romania.
Ms. Spencer also has guided numerous art initiatives for institutions such as Harlem’s 125th Street Improvement District, New York Foundation for the Arts and the Harlem Arts Alliance. She holds a graduate degree from Harvard University.
HFAS’s 2023 show, which is inspired by the Harlem Renaissance, will feature 100 artists from Africa, the Caribbean and the United States, and also will include a salute to artist and illustrator Brenda Joysmith. For the first time, the event will take place in Midtown Manhattan at The Glass House. Tickets to the event can be purchased at this link.
As always, I invite you to share what you think: Do you collect art from the African Diaspora? Why do you think it’s important? Please share your thoughts below.