By Hailey Stangebye

Photos courtesy of Bryant Anthony (Bee1ne)

For his contribution to The Gallery at the Gateway Film Center, Bryant Anthony (or Bee1ne) chose a piece that has a history with the Harlem Renaissance celebration in Columbus. It was on display during the Harlem Renaissance Experience at Gallery Hop in Aug. 2018.

The painting, “Beauty from Chaos,” is a collaboration between Bee1ne and Mr. Robot Geek. It speaks to the collaborative nature of this celebration, as well as the importance of love for self and others.

“It’s raw emotion in a freestyle piece, and it’s both of our styles put together,” Bryant says. “We felt that this piece was already essential to the Harlem Renaissance project after it was displayed at gallery hop. So we wanted to continue to have it on display, instead of having it sit in a studio. And we thought Gateway was the perfect place to continue to display this piece.”

“Beauty from Chaos” speaks to a motif throughout much of Bee1ne’s work, which is love. For Bryant, love is one of the most important components to the Harlem Renaissance.

“I realized that people of the Harlem Renaissance did it for themselves and nobody else. They showed each other love because they couldn’t get love from the outside world.”

“I realized that people of the Harlem Renaissance did it for themselves and nobody else,” Bryant says. “They showed each other love because they couldn’t get love from the outside world.”

“Beauty from Chaos” will be on display at The Gallery at the Gateway Film Center through February 2019.

By Hailey Stangebye

Photos courtesy of Lisa M. Cliff

Lisa M. Cliff clearly remembers the first time she met the late Aminah Robinson.

It was at a gallery opening for one of Aminah’s shows. The prospect of speaking to Aminah made Lisa anxious, but she overcame her nerves and worked up the gumption to introduce herself. She said ‘hello’ to Aminah and gave her a postcard that featured some of her original artwork.

“She looked at it, and then asked me a few questions about what I do, and she said it was nice work. I didn’t want to take up too much of her time,” Lisa says. “But then, Aminah said, ‘Hey, come outside with me while I take a smoke.’”

The story still makes Lisa laugh. She was so worried about meeting her idol, but when she finally met Aminah, she found her to be so welcoming and generous that it was disarming. To this day, she can’t remember the specifics of their conversation outside the gallery — she was in too great a state of awe to recall specifics.

“What I do remember is her telling me to be myself and to do the things that brought me passion. We were outside the gallery for a while. To the point where someone came out and said, ‘Uh, Aminah, you have guests,’” Lisa laughs. “It was very cool.”

“What I do remember is her telling me to be myself and to do the things that brought me passion.”

Aminah is the inspiration for Lisa’s piece in The Gallery at the Gateway Film Center, which is called “Queen Mother, Creative Messenger, Ms. Aminah, Jewel of Columbus.” Lisa, a Columbus native and mixed-media artist, originally created the piece shortly after Aminah’s passing as part of a tribute show.

Lisa says that Aminah was a constant inspiration; she was an internationally-recognized artist who grew up just a few blocks from Lisa’s childhood home, and she made an effort to tell the story of that neighborhood — Poindexter Village.

“I thought to myself, that’s what I want to be able to do. I want to be able to remain true to myself and touch and inspire people by speaking truth to power through my work the way I have watched and admired Ms. Aminah so beautifully and effortlessly do in her wonderful life’s work,” Lisa says. “She truly was a creative mother to many.”

“I want to be able to remain true to myself and touch and inspire people by speaking truth to power through my work the way I have watched and admired Ms. Aminah so beautifully and effortlessly do in her wonderful life’s work. She truly was a creative mother to many.”

Lisa’s piece in the Gateway Gallery does just that. Her work is, at the same time, clearly inspired by Aminah, yet distinctly unique to Lisa. It was the perfect choice for a Harlem Renaissance show because it uplifts contemporary art, while paying tribute to the legends who made the cultural landscape in Columbus what it is today.

Lisa’s piece is on display at the Gateway Gallery through the end of February.

Lisa’s Work

By Hailey Stangebye

Photos courtesy of Wendy Kendrick

When asked to choose a piece for The Gallery at Gateway Film Center, Wendy Kendrick ultimately settled on “Nona.”

“Nona” is Latin for nine or ninth. It refers, specifically, to the ninth month of pregnancy. That’s significant because, for Wendy, this piece represents a time of delivery in her life. She originally created it as one of a 12-part series for an exhibit called “#[un]Defined Visible/Invisible Black Woman,” which opened in March of 2017 in Oakland, California.

Since then, that original exhibit has grown and traveled across the country. In November of 2017, the show opened right here in Columbus.

“I feel like I’m really at one of the best places I’ve been in my journey as an artist. A lot of the things that challenged me when I was young in the arts no longer challenge me. ‘Nona,’ as a piece, speaks to that deliverance. A time of delivery.”

“For me, it was a time of delivery, both in terms of my work and in terms of where I am as an artist,” Wendy says. “I feel like I’m really at one of the best places I’ve been in my journey as an artist. A lot of the things that challenged me when I was young in the arts no longer challenge me. ‘Nona,’ as a piece, speaks to that deliverance. A time of delivery.”

Wendy calls this style of artwork a “quilted portrait mask” because it’s highly influenced by the African masks that she’s studied over the course of her life.

Today, Wendy is a full-time mixed media and textile artist based in Columbus, where she’s resided for more than 25 years.

Wendy’s Work

Wendy’s work is on display through February at The Gallery at the Gateway Film Center.

By Hailey Stangebye

Photos courtesy of Ludie Sénatus

The question ‘Who is Ludie Sénatus?’ has many potential answers.

I could tell you that she’s a Haitian-American artist; or that she was one of eight minority students at a small christian college in Kentucky; or even that she transferred schools, packed her life into two bins and moved to this city where she didn’t know a soul.

The best answer to that question, though, is a painting. Ludie’s piece, “Self Portrait,” sheds light on the fundamental nature of Ludie as a being.

“Self Portrait” by Ludie Sénatus

“One day, I woke up in the middle of the night,” Ludie says. “For the next two days I didn’t sleep. I just worked on my self portrait. It’s a very transcendental piece for me. I was going through a lot, and I’d always ask myself, ‘What is my purpose? What am I as a being?’”

“For the next two days I didn’t sleep. I just worked on my self portrait. It’s a very transcendental piece for me. I was going through a lot, and I’d always ask myself, ‘What is my purpose? What am I as a being?’”

“Self Portrait” is the result of that self-reflective meditation. This piece also launched Ludie in the stylistic direction for which she’s now known.

“The one lash is a theme throughout all of my work, but ‘Self Portrait’ was the first time I did that,” Ludie says. “It’s about closing your eyes to the distractions of life and getting to know your true and authentic self outside of your social status, outside of your race, outside of your sex, outside of your group of friends. Who are you as an individual being?”

Ludie’s “Self Portrait” is on display at The Gallery at the Gateway Film Center through February, along with two of her other pieces: “Passion” and “Allure.” She chose these works for this particular show because she says that authenticity and self expression are integral to the Harlem Renaissance movement we’re celebrating today.

“The Harlem Renaissance from 100 years ago is the same movement we’re creating now. It’s about bringing our art and who we are to the forefront and hoping that everyone else appreciates what it is that we bring to the table,” Ludie says. “I believe that that’s what my art depicts. It’s about being authentic, not being afraid to be yourself and encouraging others to do the same.”

“I believe that that’s what my art depicts. It’s about being authentic, not being afraid to be yourself and encouraging others to do the same.”

Ludie’s Work