Juarez Hawkins

Art Speaks: Community Building and Cultural Memory

I was one of two featured speakers for this event. My talk focused on the ways the African American communities keep the arts alive in their neighborhoods.

Art has traditionally been viewed as an individual representation of beauty and aesthetics, but how does art extend beyond this definition by acting as a vehicle for community expression? For both the Ukrainian and African American communities in Chicago, art has been utilized as a valuable tool for re-imagining social history and projecting their own voices. This event links the rise of recent artistic practices to the development of cultural identity and imagination. Discover how DuSable Museum of African American History and the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art have been providing artists spaces to share stories while strengthening the bonds of their respective communities.

LISTEN TO THE WBEZ PODCAST: Click on the "Links" page to hear my lecture. I'm the second speaker, about an hour into the podcast.