Najee Dorsey (born 1973) is a contemporary American visual artist known for using mixed-media, collage, paint and photographic works that depict Southern African American experience and culture.
Najee Dorsey | |
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| Born | January 26, 1973 Blytheville, Arkansas |
| Known for | Visual Art Founder/CEO Black Art in America |
| Spouse | Seteria Dorsey |
| Website | najeedorsey.com blackartinamerica.com/ |
Biography
editNajee Dorsey (born January 26, 1973) is an American artist and entrepreneur from Blytheville, Arkansas.[1] He began creating art at a young age and is largely self-taught.[2] Dorsey's work is included in various art institutions and private collections across the United States. In 2010, Dorsey founded Black Art in America (BAIA), a media platform that provides exposure to black art and artists, fostering connections between artists, collectors and art enthusiasts.[3]
Career
editDorsey's art reflects his experiences growing up in the South, particularly his childhood in Mississippi County, Arkansas. His work encompasses a range of media, including painting, photography, digital art and mixed media collages. Dorsey's collages frequently highlight themes related to Southern African American culture, including the Blues, African American history and socioeconomic conditions of the South.[4]
His 2021 series, The Poor People's Campaign, is titled in tribute to Martin Luther King's program for economic justice. One piece from the series, Ice Cream Melting, was displayed as a billboard in the Boxtown neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee.[5] Boxtown, a historic neighborhood founded by formerly enslaved people, was central to a legal dispute over the construction of an oil pipeline from 2019 to 2021.[6] The series addresses themes of Afrofuturism and environmental racism in poor communities in the South.[7] Dorsey commented on the work, stating, “If you live in an urban environment, you’re pretty close to a factory, maybe a refinery, perhaps a landfill. This work speaks to how we live in plain sight of a lot of these corporate wastelands.”[5]
Projects and initiatives
editIn 2022, Dorsey and his wife, Seteria Dorsey, also a visual artist and his business partner, opened the Black Art in America Gallery and Sculpture Garden in the Atlanta metropolitan area.[2][8] The gallery, located on the site of a former church, features works by notable artists such as Faith Ringgold, Kerry James Marshall, Alfred Conteh, Delita Martin, Elizabeth Catlett, Samella Lewis, Romare Bearden, and Louis Delsarte.[2][8]
The BAIA Foundation, established by Dorsey, is dedicated to "documenting, preserving, and promoting the contributions of the African American arts community." The foundation has supported projects that archive the work of local artists and has facilitated connections between African American artists and students at primary schools and historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).[9]
Exhibitions
editDorsey has exhibited his work at many galleries and institutions, including:
- Museum of Art-DeLand, DeLand, Florida (2022)[10]
- Anika Dawkins Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia (2021)[11]
- Ohr-O'Keefe Museum of Art, Biloxi, Mississippi (2021)[12]
- Griots Gallery, Miami, Florida (2020) [13]
- PRIZM Art Fair, Miami Art Week (2019)[14]
- Columbus Liberty Theatre, Columbus, Georgia (2019)
- Mildred L. Terry Library, Columbus, Georgia (2019)[15]
- Stonecrest Library, Lithonia, Georgia, The Art of Najee Dorsey: Environmental Injustice, Visions of a Futuristic Black South (2019)[16]
- Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, R.D.’s Backroom[17]
- University of Arkansas Library, Fayetteville, Arkansas, Remixed: Something Ole, Sum Nu Roux (2016);[18]
- The American Jazz Museum, Kansas City, Missouri, Jazz Then and Now (2015)[19][20]
- Syracuse University, Community Folk Art Center, Resistance (2015)[21]
- The Houston Museum of African American Culture, Houston, Texas, Leaving Mississippi: Reflections on Heroes and Folklore (2015)[22]
- The Columbus Museum, Columbus, Georgia, Leaving Mississippi: Reflections on Heroes and Folklore (2014)[23]
- The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit, Michigan, Visions of the 44th Collection (2012)
Selected works
editFurther reading
editArt and Public History: Approaches, Opportunities, and Challenges, edited by Rebecca Bush and K. Tawny Paul[31]
Cool Jobs: ‘Artrepreneur’ Uses Web to Expose World to Artists of Color [3]
References
edit- ^ "Najee Dorsey | South Writ Large". Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ a b c Feaster, Felicia (2024-01-31). "Najee Dorsey creates a home for Black artists". Atlanta Magazine. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ a b "Cool Jobs: Artrepreneur Uses Web To Expose World To Artists Of Color". June 19, 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ "THE VIBE: Founder of Black Art in America stops by". November 15, 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ a b Gural, Natasha (June 29, 2021). "From Museums, Galleries, And A Memphis Billboard, Najee Dorsey Gracefully Conveys A Vital Southern Narrative". Forbes. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ Jones, Tony (2021-04-08). "Nashville Resident Agrees: "Suddenly, Boxtown Matters"". The Tennessee Tribune. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ "Smokestacks In the Distance: Environmental Racism, Afrofuturism, and Najee Dorsey's "Poor People's Campaign"". South Writ Large. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ a b Renault, Gillian Anne. "Everyday Heroes: Najee Dorsey". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, ArtsATL. ISSN 1539-7459. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ "Black Art in America Funding Recipients". The Atlanta Constitution. via Newspapers.com. August 9, 2022. p. C2. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ "Fall Arts Preview, Art Museums and Galleries". The Orlando Sentinel. via Newspapers.com. 2022-08-26. p. D8. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
- ^ "Atlanta Art". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. via Newspapers.com. 2021-05-21. p. D1. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ "Seen and Told: Alternative Narratives". Ohr-O'Keefe Museum of Art. 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
- ^ "Black Art". The Miami Herald. via Newspapers.com. 2020-03-15. p. 1M. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
- ^ Gural, Natasha. "PRIZM Awakens Mighty Overdue Dialogue At Miami Art Week Fair Dedicated To African And African Diaspora Artist". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
- ^ Waldock, Julie Anne (13 June 2019). "40 foot wide mural dedicated at Mildred L. Terry library". WTVM News.Retrieved 18 July 2024.
- ^ "The Art of Najee Dorsey". DeKalb County Public Library Event.Retrieved 18 July 2024.
- ^ "R.D.'s Backroom". PAFA - Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. September 15, 2017.Retrieved 18 July, 2024.
- ^ "Remixed: Something Ole, Sum Nu Roux | University of Arkansas Libraries". libraries.uark.edu.Retrieved 18 July 2024.
- ^ Martin, James (September 21, 2015). "Hale Woodruff Family Collection".Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- ^ Helsel, Amber. "Najee Dorsey". www.jacksonfreepress.com.Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- ^ "Artist Talk with Najee Dorsey: Resistance". Syracuse University|Community Folk Art Center. Archived from the original on 2020-01-02. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- ^ Tommaney, Susie (May 11, 2015). "Portraits of Southern Life With a Side of History". Houston Press.Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- ^ "Leaving Mississippi - Reflections on Heroes and Folkfore: Works by Naj". columbusmuseum.com.Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- ^ "Najee Dorsey | This My Baldwin (2020)". Artsy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
- ^ "Najee Dorsey | Return to Eden #1 (2019)". Artsy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
- ^ "Najee Dorsey | Shine the Light (2020)". Columbus Museum Catalog. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ "Najee Dorsey | B-4-Rosa-Here-I-Stand (2014)". Columbus Museum Catalog. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ a b "Najee Dorsey | Captive Audience (2019)". Zenith Gallery. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
- ^ "Najee Dorsey | Bethlehem Steel (2015)". Arnika Dawkins Gallery. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
- ^ "Najee Dorsey | Harriet's Daughter (2018)". Petrucci Family Foundation. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
- ^ Bush, Rebecca; Tawny Paul, K. (2017). Art and Public History: Approaches, Opportunities, and Challenges. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781442268456. Retrieved 12 August 2024.