After the Showers — a Visual Poem

a visual poem.

Curated for the Black Hippie Art installation at the 2021 PHL Juneteenth Picnic.

This poem without words is an ode to earth.

For Africans taken from our land for our rich knowledge

and land-working skill, Juneteenth marks a pivotal

moment of reclamation in our history as

land-tenders and natural beings.

These photographs, featuring Fannie Lou Hamer, Zora

Neale Hurston, Maya Angelou, Eartha Kitt,

and Josephine Baker in nature represent

the continuation of that legacy.

The flowers and foliage, collected by the artist in

various places throughout the city of Philadelphia this

spring, represent a reminder of our place in that lineage.

Whether from farmland or forest, a garden, city trees or

bushes, supermarket bouquets, or gifts from friends,

every plant and moment with nature represents

a sacred and healing connection.

When we find connection with our Mother Earth,

we find connection with ourselves.

After the showers of slavery, Jim Crow, police brutality,

and Covid-19, what will we grow?

Black-Owned Businesses and Organizations to Support