Openings to feature new work by Kenturah Davis, Desmond Lewis,Lester Merriweather, Coriana Close, and others
Artists of color will be represented in four separate art exhibitions opening at Crosstown Arts in Crosstown Concourse during Black History Month.
All four exhibitions — Kenturah Davis + Desmond Lewis, Every American Thing by Lester Merriweather, Recent Acquisitions (a group show curated by Merriweather), and New Work by Coriana Close — will open on Friday, February 15 from 6-8 pm. The exhibitions will remain on view through March 10.
Kenturah Davis + Desmond Lewis, presented by Locate Arts/Seed Space and Delta Axis, is opening in Crosstown Arts’ West Gallery. Memphis artist Desmond Lewis and Kenturah Davis (an artist working between Los Angeles, New Haven, and Accra, Ghana) were selected by Delta Axis and Locate Arts/Seed Space to exhibit their work together based on their innovative sensitivity to material, their exploration of social and relational content, and the critical acclaim associated with their work.
This two-person show is one in a series of statewide exhibitions, organized by Locate Arts, that features Tennessee artists and artists from out of state, and partners with a local organization. These exhibitions are leading up to a major statewide event: The TN Triennial, which will be the largest contemporary art exhibition ever to occur in Tennessee.
Brian R. Jobe of Locate Arts will moderate a panel discussion in the West Gallery with Kenturah Davis and Desmond Lewis on Saturday, Feb. 16 at 2 pm. After the discussion, the public is invited to visit the studio of Desmond Lewis.
Every American Thing, an exhibition by local artist Lester Merriweather, will open in Crosstown Arts East Atrium space (the open area at the top of the red spiral staircase). Lester Julian Merriweather attended the Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture. He holds an MFA from Memphis College of Art and a BA from Jackson State University. Merriweather currently serves as the Curatorial Consultant for The PPF Art Collection. He is on advisory panels for the CLTV and LocateArts. Merriweather serves as Principal of LJM Studio Memphis.
In addition to hosting his solo show, Merriweather also curated another group exhibition opening at Crosstown Arts that evening — Recent Acquisitions: Friends of the Brooks Museum of Art. This exhibition features work that will be donated to the Brooks Museum after the show closes. Featured artists include Radcliffe Bailey, Kevin Beasley, Sanford Biggers, Torkwase Dyson, Lawrence Mathews lll, Lester Merriweather, Carl Moore, Ebony Patterson, Sheila Pree Bright, and Ernest Withers.
Artist Coriana Close will show new video art in the Crosstown Arts Screening Room. Close serves as an Associate Professor of Photography at The University of Memphis. She has a BA in Cinema Studies with Honors in Studio Art from Oberlin College, and an MFA in Photography from The University of Arizona.
Coriana works in both still photography and appropriated layered video. Conceptually, her work focuses on social justice, state-sanctioned violence, and the relationship between human beings and the natural world.
Crosstown Arts is a contemporary arts organization dedicated to further cultivating the creative community in Memphis. We provide resources and create opportunities and experiences to inspire, support, and connect a diverse range of creative people, projects, and audiences. Crosstown Arts is a founding partner, co-developer, and tenant of Crosstown Concourse.
