Students and faculty fill the Eastern Star Gallery on the day of the new exhibit opening, discussing the pictures on the walls, flipping through books and watching the TV. The Black Student Union organized and created the recent exhibition, “At the Doorstep of Culture: Black Spaces as Sanctuaries.”
The exhibit opened Feb. 6 and was available to all students and special guests outside of the Archer community until Feb. 27. The gallery was a partnership between BSU and the ESG, and it consisted of a replica of a living room and hair salon from the mid-20th century. The living room featured a couch, a TV, a record player, books and magazines.
English teacher Sala Bandele-Jackson was one of the advisers in charge of the gallery and one of the minds behind its concept. She said that the idea came to her after reading a novel fitness coach Danielle LeNoir gave her.
“Coach L bought me a Black vintage book where these two women basically travel the country, and they gather different Black vintage artifacts, and they put together this book,” Bandele-Jackson said. “And I just thought it was the coolest thing ever. And so, Coach L and I were talking, and I was like, ‘It would be so cool if we could do something like this here at Archer.'”
Bandele-Jackson was also inspired by a Mickalene Thomas exhibit, where the artist recreated a living room from her childhood. After getting the gallery approved, Bandele-Jackson reached out to members of BSU to bring in artifacts that held value to them. Bandele-Jackson brought photos of her family members.
“Serenity brought in a number of her own albums that she had, I think Sloane brought in albums, Sydney Curry brought in albums, Sloane brought in a skateboard — on the back of the skateboard is an image of Nina Simone,” Bandele-Jackson said. “Kennedy’s father and mother have these sculptures that are truly beautiful and just priceless. One of them is a hand-it’s picking cotton, and then it transforms into placing a ballot for voting.”
Sophomore Edie Wyles is a member of ESG and was in charge of the gallery’s photography. Wyles said she hopes people see the value and uniqueness behind every individual object displayed in the exhibit.
“I hope people understand the history behind it and the stories behind it because everybody in BSU put in an artifact. I hope people will understand the time that it took and how emotional it can be for some people,” Wyles said. “Because, you know, there’s something really meaningful in every single object, and they all have a story.”
Marcela Riddick, an Archer alumna, visited the gallery along with her friends from the graduating class of 2016. She said that the gallery was impactful for her because of the role BSU played in her Archer experience.
“BSU was a big part of our experience going through Archer, and we were the exec board of BSU for a really long time, and so it was really cool to see the initiative and see something different and new and the innovation and representation was so beautiful. We’re walking into the gallery trying not to cry,” Riddick said. “It was so beautiful, so well done. It was really cool to see their vision come to life.”
Riddick appreciated what BSU was able to create with the gallery because she felt it showcased significant aspects of African American culture. She said that BSU has grown since her time at Archer, and she feels it has evolved.
“It was really just about sharing Black culture with everybody at Archer, and there wasn’t as many of us, especially not as many as there are now. And being able to share culture through different things was our mission,” Riddick said. “So being able to see that displayed, it was BSU coming together to show people what it feels like to be in a Black home and salon. They are such a big part of African American culture.”
