Brownsville Matters

We are thrilled to present Brownsville Matters, an exhibition featuring eleven emerging Brooklyn artists’ interpretations of East Brooklyn’s cultural identity. All works were selected via an open call for art, which garnered over 100 submissions. Curators Rujeko Hockley (Brooklyn Museum) and Farrah Lafontant (Brooklyn Arts Council) narrowed submissions down to 43 works of art, that were then voted on by Brownsville residents.

The exhibit features artwork by Cheryl Bowers, Christine Stoddard, Dominique Davenport, Ebony Bolt, Jazmine Hayes, Kisha Johnson, Laurent Chevalier, Malcolm Williams, Maria Belford, Sophia Dawson, and Tristan Lamour. These artists present eleven different stories of cultural and neighborhood identity.

Ebony Bolt’s work is a visual diary of her everyday life; her piece Bodega Summers highlights her love for East New York, and the lessons it has taught her. Sophia Dawson’s powerful portrait (from her series All Power to the People) shines a bright spotlight on the faces of East Brooklyn’s unknown activists. Laurent Chevalier’s photographs capture the story of his Brooklyn; however, by keeping his images devoid of markers, he forces the viewer to lean on their own histories and form their own conclusions.