HAIRitage: A Cultural Journey & Experience
installation and acrylic paintings
2008
HAIRitage was created during my graduate school experience at the University of Cincinnati, as I sought to explore not just hair culture but also its historical relation to the present. I wanted the work to be engaging beyond the two-dimensional surface and reach into installation and live performance qualities, in which the audience, no matter their background, would have a renewed sense of pride or even a newer understanding of hair culture as well as hair justice.
While my work was established in 2008, the CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural hair) was established in legislation in 2021. This only confirmed my desire to seek hair justice and anti-discrimination on a broader level. I was empowered by this legislation to help pass the CROWN Act, which has not yet passed in the state of Ohio. However, it is making more and more strides across the country to provide a sense of safety and security toward those who feel they have no voice in protecting their bodies—even the hair that grows out of their own bodies.
My work will ultimately help my three children and my students as they go off into the world, embodying the tresses of their ancestors. They should have love and pride for their culture, as I always have, even when everyone around me did not. Ultimately, I hope to create a stronger sense of community.
