News
"Ajanaé Dawkins: The Soul of a PoetTheologian" — CityPulse
"Few things have made this life worthwhile like the people who sit with me, stirred, tender, open and near spiritual encounters over what language can do. Over how the Black writers before us wielded…
Ajanaé Dawkins addresses heavy questions in ‘No One Teaches Us How to Be Daughters’ — Matter News
"Four years ago, as part of this process, Dawkins brainstormed a series of questions that she wished she could ask all of the women in her family, dead or alive, including: What is your legacy? What…
Food Accessibility and Powerful Narratives Propel Upcoming Exhibition at Urban Arts Space
Through travel, higher education and introspection, artist and businessman Azubuike Akunne came to realize that our environments play a crucial role in the lives we lead. A Columbus native, Akunne is…
Missing Black Women and Familial Inheritance at the Heart of New Exhibition at Urban Arts Space
Stirred by witnessing the impact of her great-aunt going missing, poet Ajanaé Dawkins is investigating the myriad ways that Black women go missing or lose themselves amid family archival. Dawkins’s…
Columbus Makes Art Presents Ajanaé Dawkins on Beyoncé, Poetry and Lineage
Ajanaé Dawkins, Urban Arts Space’s current Community Artist-in-Residence, is a poet, performer and theologian based in Columbus. Her upcoming exhibition—No One Teaches Us How to Be Daughters…
Columbus ensemble brings overlooked queer composers to the fore
"When musicians Noah Demland and Sam Johnson first talked about collaborating, a number of their conversations centered on a series of questions: What makes music queer? And can you tell a person is…
Flesh, Skin, and Bones: Contemplating “A Love Letter”
“The wind opens up these wounds, and it hurts to write these words to you. But I know I have to tell you these truths in this way, understand?” — Tanya Diaz-Kozlowski What do trauma and love have in…
Ohio State’s Juneteenth event celebrates community connections
“'Here in the Hale Center, we have one of the largest Black art collections in the United States and we’re also recognized by the Association for Black Culture Centers as one of the top [centers of…
Liberation and joy share center stage in ‘Souls from the Well’ — Matter News
"'The show is to really acknowledge the intersection between Black and Palestinian liberation, and also as a reprieve for the amount of work that’s been done specifically in fighting for Palestinian…