Auntie Kym
Curated by Kymberlee Johnson Norfleet, Hakim Pitts and Makeba Rainey
Friday, January 11, 2019 – Sunday, February 17, 2019
Exhibition Statement
The mission of Auntie Kym is to help each other develop the courage to reclaim our voice through stories that are alike and unlike our own. This space, this Living Room, explores the processes of sorting through pain, reclaiming our voice and writing our own narratives of what and who we are through poetry, prose, personal reflections, and age old practices from ancestors.
This exhibit is an ongoing, interactive conversation; a visualization of how revolutionary and healing Black love between blood relatives, tribe, kin and community can be. It is an experiment in healing generational trauma through story-telling and emotional skill-sharing/building.
Through this offering, the wish is for us to get free and makes space for inter-generational dialogue with elders, children, teens, millennials, Black women, and Black queer folk in safe and sanctioned spaces. Auntie Kym is meant to challenge you to think differently, become more inclusive, spark activism and action, enlighten your spirit, and give you a sense of well-being and optimism.
Auntie Kym features additional artworks by Janyce Denise Glasper, Rene Bell, and Talya Danielle.
Events
Join us every Sunday from noon-4pm for “Against All Odds: Conversations with Auntie Kym” – an ongoing series of discussions and workshops facilitated by Kymberlee Johnson Norfleet.
About the Artist
Kymberlee Johnson- Norfleet is an artist, writer, oral historian, and free spirit from North Philadelphia by way of Hollywood. She writes prose and poetry and hosts community conversations centered on healing and freedom. The tapestry of her work is woven together through storytelling that explores personal triumph, pain, glory, and the love she’s experienced on her sojourn as a Black woman, mother, lover, survivor, and friend. Her desire is to share her craft, life, and wisdom in an effort to build a more beautiful and compassionate world for all of us. She lives, writes, and creates from her abode in Center City, Philadelphia. She is a proud mother of one, Sydney Deveroux, and grandmother of 3 beautiful granddaughters, Thai, Hudson, and Coltrane.
Photo Credit: Hakim Pitts