South Guilford News

Local artist Bevelyn Afor Ukah was chosen to create original artwork for the second-annual Downtown Arts Special Commission Art for City Hall. A 10-by-20-foot vinyl reproduction of Ukah’s original artwork was recently installed in the Melvin Municipal Office Building (MMOB), 300 W. Washington St. The vinyl piece hangs on the council chamber wall, visible from the Plaza entrance to the building. 

Titled “Our Collective Table,” the original artwork is a mixed-media piece that represents Ukah’s artistic reflection on the theme of Greensboro in 2022. The reproduction will be displayed in the MMOB through early 2024. The original work hangs in the Creative Greensboro office suite in the Greensboro Cultural Center and will become part of the City’s permanent artwork collection.

“Greensboro evolves as we honor and learn from our past human and ecological relationships,” Ukah wrote in her artist statement. “These stories often find themselves convening at one of the 100-plus parks in Greensboro. When I visited Country Park, I was struck by the diversity of people I saw there. This artwork is inspired by and honors the public gathering spaces in Greensboro that allow people from many different walks of life to come together to connect with nature, history, and each other.”

Ukah is a visual artist, advocate, and storyteller based in Greensboro. She has a Bachelor of Arts in international studies and sociology & anthropology from Guilford College and a master’s in intercultural service leadership and management from the School for International Training Graduate Institute. She is the director of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems Committee on Racial Equity in the Food System and founder of AFI Oak Consulting.

Ukah has had solo exhibits at Golden Belt in Durham, NC, and Pink Dog Creative in Asheville, NC. In 2021-22, she was the directing coordinator for the Food Youth Initiative’s community mural in Durham. Ukah has also exhibited at the Center for Visual Artists as part of the Black Women’s Art Collective’s “Seeing Ourselves” exhibit in 2022. She completed artist residencies with the Penland School of Crafts and Greensboro Residency for Original Works.

The Downtown Arts program features and supports the work of Greensboro-based artists and enhances the City’s built environment with original artwork. A committee comprised of Cultural Affairs Commission members and City of Greensboro Communications and Marketing staff chose Ukah from among ­­­21 applicants to create the special commission.  

Earlier this year, Creative Greensboro’s Downtown Arts program selected artwork from 10 local artists for display on the 11 electronic kiosks located throughout Downtown Greensboro. The kiosks presently display images of mixed-media pieces by Greensboro artists Jessica Dame and Shaleen Miller.

Founded in 2019, Creative Greensboro provides support for, ensures access to, and drives awareness of Greensboro’s creative community. Through a range of programs, services, and partnerships, Creative Greensboro supports the development of a vibrant city. Learn more at www.creativegreensboro.com.

Original source can be found here