Why Biden might drop his vice president (and reasons why he shouldn’t)

Despite receiving the greatest number of votes cast in a presidential election, there is discussion among some Democrats and commentators about breaking up the Biden-Harris partnership for the 2024 election.

While Joe Biden has become the target of much criticism for the inflationary challenges of the current US economy, it is vice president Kamala Harris’s position on the ticket that is subject to much more debate.

Harris, the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants to the US, is the first woman to become the US vice president. Seen by many as a trailblazer for women of colour and women in general, it may seem surprising that Democrats are discussing dropping her from the ticket.

But there are some signs of unhappiness. Recently, influential senator Elizabeth Warren gave lukewarm support to Harris as vice president for a second term.

Before November’s midterm elections, Washington Post columnist George F. Will not only called for Biden to be dropped for 2024, but said that Harris, was “starkly unqualified as his successor”.

This attack on Harris has been echoed by other columnists, with one suggesting that Biden replace Harris with Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, while another stated that Harris’ poor communication skills illustrate that she was a poor choice as VP or as Biden’s successor.

Presidents with unfavourable ratings have often been advised to find a new running mate for a second term. It would be unusual, but not unprecedented, for such a partnership to be dissolved. The last elected vice president to be dropped from the ticket was Henry A. Wallace in 1944.

Wallace’s bid for a second term as vice president was defeated at the 1944 Democratic convention after President Franklin Delano Roosevelt refused to endorse him. Democrats opted for Harry H. Truman instead.

In 1976 Gerald Ford exchanged his vice president Nelson Rockefeller for Bob Dole, but neither Ford nor Rockefeller had been on the ticket in the 1972 elections. Ford had become vice president after Spiro Agnew resigned in 1973 amidst a tax evasion scandal. Ford then replaced Nixon as president after Nixon resigned in August 1974 during the Watergate crisis.

Closing up the partnership

However, Biden has consistently included Harris in talking about the administration’s achievements.

In his state of the union address last month, Biden identified her efforts in helping small businesses. He also stated that he and Harris were doing everything they could “to protect access to reproductive health care and safeguard patient privacy”.

Harris is incredibly popular with African American voters, and this was an important part of Biden’s coalition during the 2020 election campaign.

If Biden were to drop Harris, it could seriously impact his popularity with Black voters and undermine his support from women voters too.

Aprill Turner, spokeswoman for Higher Heights for America, an advocate group for African American women in politics, told one reporter that if Biden was to cast aside Harris it would “definitely ricochet through Black America”.

One of the reasons behind the calls to drop Harris might be her poor national poll rating. Even though Biden is polling badly with the American public, Harris is rated even lower.

Republican-controlled Southern states, such as Texas, have been battling with the Biden administration over immigration policy, and Harris has been targeted for blame as she has been put in charge of border policy.

Kamala Harris on the state of the union speech.

On Christmas Eve 2022, buses of central and southern American migrants were transported from the border states and dropped off outside Harris’ home in Washington. And with Democrats also criticising federal immigration policy, Harris could become an easy target in a 2024 election.

Not all the criticism laid at Harris’ door is fair. She may have taken a while to visit the border, but she had to spend more time than most vice presidents overseeing things in the US Senate. With the Senate gridlocked at 50 votes each, her casting vote as president of the Senate was essential, forcing her to stay in Washington DC.

Other vice presidential candidates?

If Biden does replace Harris, who does he choose? Leading contender would be Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Immensely popular on the campaign trail, Buttigieg would be the first openly gay vice president. He has struggled in the past to win over minority voters.

There might be calls for a potential successor to Biden that has a wider appeal than Harris. Governor Newsom might have that although he has said that he will not run for president in 2024. If he campaigned as Biden’s vice presidential nominee, it would raise his profile, something that he would need to do to achieve his national ambitions.

For a man who demands loyalty, Biden might also be reluctant to get rid of a partner who has been exactly that. Despite suggestions that Biden was going to be a one-term president, there has been no question of Harris as a power behind the throne, as there was in the Bush-Cheney years.

Perhaps, more importantly, Harris has the respect and admiration of both the president and the first lady, as well as the support of leading progressives.

If Biden does choose to end his partnership with Harris, it would be a bold move in what might be a close-run race in 2024. There could be a repeat of 1944, where senior Democrats decide that Harris will not be Biden’s successor, but if inflation continues to ease, then the Biden-Harris ticket may be too successful a partnership to break up.

The Lehigh Valley’s art scene according to the artists

Left to right: Calvin Alexander Ramsey, Camile Who Armstrong, Deirdre Van Walters, and Anthony Smith Jr. answering questions from the mediator. Photo by: Lily Safran ’25

New York City is often hailed as the art center of the world with its Broadway lights and renowned art galleries, but some of the most inclusive, community-building art may be found in less expected places. 

Such a place is the Lehigh Valley, which has a presence of small-scale artistic companies that often provide more opportunities for marginalized artists than larger associations in better-known cities. The art scene in downtown Allentown provided those opportunities for Deirdre Van Walters, a performing and teaching artist. She recalls a weekly art festival called Word Wednesdays, which she attributes to her initial involvement in the Valley’s art scene. Van Walters says, “Word Wednesdays was this great funky vibe that happened in downtown Allentown where there were live musicians and poets and singers, and I fit right on in there… and that led to me getting into the fold, and I feel fortunate and blessed that that fold did look like me… and it was not just a closed group, but it was really really welcoming in that respect.” 

Van Walters went on to describe the overall artistic environment of the Valley at the time, saying “I didn’t see too many accommodating opportunities for me to fit in or to even try to audition for that role or this role. If it was casting for someone who looked like me, the character was just so conflicting from who I am that I chose not to represent in that particular role. So, that was my experience.” 

When there is a lack of representation in this sense, artists such as Van Walters turn to smaller-scale artistic outlets in order to express themselves. Muhlenberg invited five Black artists who have found their place in the Lehigh Valley art scene. They explained how the Valley has provided them with an environment where there were opportunities for all voices, as well as how there is room for improvement in the Valley’s art scene. This included Van Walters, who took advantage of the opportunities the Lehigh Valley provided in becoming the president of a devised theater company called Basement Poetry. Van Walters was one of the five artists invited by Muhlenberg College for a conversation entitled “Traveling While Black Through the Arts,” organized by Lehigh University’s Zoellner Arts Center. This was part of a slate of community conversations being hosted until Mar. 31 as well as a cinematic virtual experience running until Mar. 31 entitled “Traveling While Black.” 

Michael Freeman, an abstract artist based in Easton, Pennsylvania, is well-versed in how art can be used as an outlet for creativity and community building. As Freeman grew up with a vision impairment and a speech impediment, he used art and engagement with Black art specifically in order to express himself. Freeman’s abstract work and disabilities have not always made things easy for him in the Lehigh Valley, yet he reflects on how the presence and support of other Black artists in the community gave him confidence to pursue his passion. Freeman says, “Having seen other Black artists that I’ve been getting to know like Anthony Smith kind of embrace me in making very abstract artwork, I’m just here to embrace it and help others that look like me to do whatever they want to do, no matter what your disability is in life.”

As the artists discussed how they initially got involved with the arts, author and playwright Calvin Alexander Ramsey reflected on how the uncertainty of tomorrow that came with 9/11 motivated him to pursue his dream. Ramsey said, “I was flying out of Logan Airport, two days before the hijack, and after that, it just made me realize that if I want to do something with my writing, I really can’t keep putting it off. So, after that incident, that major tragedy, I just jumped into it. My children were pretty much almost grown, and so I started working on plays, and I’m very fortunate that I got my play produced… If you have a dream, just jump out there and do it. It’s going to haunt you until you do something with it.”

“If you have a dream, just jump out there and do it. It’s going to haunt you until you do something with it.”

Calvin Alexander Ramsey

Getting involved in the Lehigh Valley arts scene is all about networking according to Camille Armstrong, who—after performing in “Stomp” on Broadway—moved to the Lehigh Valley for her children to get a better education. Being the only artist among six first generation Jamaican-American siblings, Armstrong was determined to forge her own way and found that connecting to various people led to success. She says, “I think most of my experiences and most of my ‘ins’ in the art scene was getting to know people at the wrestling practice, at the cheerleading practice for my daughter or my son… and so it started just with one relationship, and then it grew into another.” 

Although initially presenting this idea in a positive light, Armstrong later commented on its drawbacks with the comment, “There’s no limit to art, really, but the Lehigh Valley tends to limit themselves to the possibilities… you really think that you’re coming into a rich, artistic community until you try to get in, and if you don’t know someone’s grandmother or you just don’t know a person who’s the director of a Touchstone Theater then you’re just not getting in, and so how are we celebrating the art?” 

“Yeah, I call it ‘the art mafia.’ There’s like three people that control the entire visual arts scene in the entire Valley—it’s kind of crazy,” responded Anthony Smith Jr. Smith is a visual and mixed-media artist, a professor of art at Northampton College and an artist in residence at the Banana Factory Art and Education Center. 

While the Valley provides a fertile ground for a thriving art scene, not everyone views the area in this way. Smith noted that “we’re seen mostly as a community where artists are looking for cheap real estate to escape New York and Philly prices… I don’t think the locals necessarily see this space as a place where they can derive world class art, especially in the visual arts world.” 

This leads to questions regarding the responsibilities of art consumers and how they can best support artists in the Lehigh Valley. Freeman sums up what all the artists responded and what applies to supporting all art with the comment, “Open your mind to something that’s different. Something that is not the norm, but that is beautiful and that you can see the beauty in. You might see something that somebody else might not see.”

RankTribe™ Black Business Directory News – Arts & Entertainment

Derrick Adams Gives Black Joy the Cinematic Treatment

When Derrick Adams began representing Black joy on canvas in the 1990s, I was reminded of the uplifting images created by artists of the interwar Harlem renaissance, whose art affirmed the power of ‘racial respect and race pride as an instrument of change, and as a visual embodiment of cultural emancipation1.’ At a time when Black figurative art was often taken to be synonymous with the social realism of Black trauma, Adams’s insistence on creating images of Black refuge, celebration and leisure felt revelatory.

Since then many artists have followed suit. Sola Olulode’s Bed Series (2022–ongoing) is devoted to Black queer couples in states of quiet languor, and projects like Navild Acosta and Fannie Sosa’s Black Power Naps (2019–ongoing) are currently being celebrated at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Adams’s solo exhibition at The FLAG Art Foundation, ‘I Can Show You Better Than I Can Tell You’, presents sixteen large-scale works from his new series, ‘Motion Picture Paintings’ (2020–22). Evoking a range of reference points from cinema, television and popular music in the artist’s hallmark geometric style, the series finds joy in everyday life.

SWA, Derrick Adams
Derrick Adams, SWA, 2022, acrylic on wood panel, 198 × 152 × 5 cm. Courtesy: the artist and LGDR  

Jane Harris In a 2021 interview with ARTnews, you described this new body of work as ‘a combination of everything I’ve worked on’. Can you elaborate?

Derrick Adams There are a lot of formal elements and style variations from previous work, like the ‘Deconstruction Worker’ series [2010­–ongoing], and the ‘Floater’ series [2016–2019], that come together in the ‘Motion Picture Paintings’. The figures are very geometric but are supported by rounded, more organic shapes. It creates more space and dimension, and allows colour variations to dictate both density and lightness. The spaces are so much more psychological as a result.

The series started during the pandemic, which gave me a lot of time for self-reflection in the absence of studio visits and exhibitions. This FLAG Art show wasn’t even on the radar yet. And that’s what is special about this body of work. It wasn’t made for a space or show. It became very personal because of the quietness of making it.

Weeee The People, Derrick Adams, 2021
Derrick Adams, Weeee The People, 2021, acrylic on wood panel, 124 × 154 × 6 cm. Courtesy: the artist and LGDR

JH That makes me think about the language in this work – the song and movie titles, popular euphemisms and slang words that appear throughout. What motivated that?

DA The text started out as notations of things that came to mind as I was working on the paintings, contemplating their meaning. Eventually I decided to integrate the words into the compositions. I wanted to spark an interest in the relationship between text and image that was less literal and more organic. 

JH You draw a lot of inspiration from your imagination, but I heard The Horse You Rode In On [2022] is based on personal references and family photos. Do you consider this work a self-portrait of sorts?

DA Everyone thinks that. I mean, it does resemble me, but the image came from my imagination. It also happens to be my favourite painting in the series because I was able to merge the horse and the human figure in an abstract fashion.

Man, Derrick Adams, 2022
Derrick Adams, The Horse You Rode In On, 2022, acrylic on wood panel, 182 × 243 cm. Courtesy: the artist and LGDR

JH In this piece, the words ‘Town & Country’ echo the typography of the magazine of the same name. Were you thinking about class aspiration and self-styling, subjects you’ve dealt with before?

DA For me, it was more about the ideal of being well-rounded. It’s about being able to function in a very metropolitan space of prosperity and then [to go to] the country, which is more relaxed, more casual. The Town & Country figure is a forward-thinking pioneer who can do it all. He could be in town. He could be in the country. He’s cool. He’s got it.

JH Well, thats kind of like you.

DA Maybe it is a self-portrait!

JH I find that you’re often drawn to forgotten historical figures. In So Much to Celebrate [2021], for example, you depict a museum party scene in honour of Ellis Haizlip – the producer and host of Soul! [1968–1973], one of the first variety shows on US television that showcased African American arts and culture. Yet you don’t actually make a portrait of him. Why is that?

So Much to Celebrate, Derrick Adams, 2021
Derrick Adams, So Much to Celebrate, 2021, acrylic, paper birthday hats, pompoms on wood panel, 200 × 24 cm. Courtesy: the artist and LGDR

DA I prefer to invoke curiosity and intrigue through more non-representational elements. It’s like putting crumbs down to create a trail and lure people in. When I was looking at the Green Book [referencing a body of work exhibited under the title ‘Sanctuary’ in 2018, inspired by the Harlem postal worker who created the legendary Black travel guide, The Negro Motorist Green Book, in 1936], I wanted to highlight the publication rather than its creator. And its the same thing with Haizlip. I decided to paint an image that evokes a lobby card, or a still from a movie trailer, rather than doing a straight portrait. The context, to me, is what encourages a viewer to seek out more information on Google, for example.

JH You used the word pioneer to describe the figure in The Horse You Rode In On, and I think of you as a pioneer of this idea of Black joy, at least in the realm of contemporary art.

DA Thank you. I consider it a deliberate political act to represent the Black experience in a more complex way, and with a broader sense of humanity that centres the celebratory. As a Black artist, it would’ve been very easy for me to receive even more accolades for highlighting traumatic experiences and to use that as my platform.

JH But you didn’t.

Just, Derrick Adams, 2022
Derrick Adams, JUST, 2022, acrylic on wood panel, 241 × 182 cm. Courtesy: the artist and LGDR

DA No, I doubled down because I really wanted people to know that it’s okay to enjoy what you’re looking at. I think it’s important to highlight that in the face of adversity there are still moments of normalcy. I’m not making a Hallmark card but evoking emotions which, hopefully, everyone relates to. Like in JUST [2022], anyone can imagine what lounging in a hammock feels like, regardless of what colour the dangling legs are.

JH And what was the ultimate feeling you took away from the experience of making this work?

DA I think that, right now as we have it, people are making work for shows. They’re not really making work in the way that the practice of art has always been about: experimentation, meditation and discovery. The best time for artmaking is when you have no shows or obligations, no excuse not to make art. I really encourage younger artists to stay in that space as long as they can, because that’s an amazing space to be in.

1Archibald J. Motley Jr.: The David C. Driskell Series of African American Art Vol IV (2004)

Derrick Adams’s ‘I Can Show You Better Than I Can Tell You‘ is on view at The FLAG Art Foundation, New York, until 11 March

Main image: Derrick Adams, Onward and Upward, 2021, acrylic on wood panel, 182 × 487 × 5 cm. Courtesy the artist and LGDR
Thumbnail: Portrait of Derrick Adams in front of his work at the opening of ‘I Can Show You Better Than I Can Tell You’. Photograph: Casey Kelbaugh

RankTribe™ Black Business Directory News – Arts & Entertainment

Things to do in the San Fernando Valley, LA area, March 2-9

(Left) Darius De La Cruz and Kevin Matsumoto. (Middle) Erin Pineda and Kwana Martinez. (Right) Kwana Martinez and Lloyd Roberson II. Cast members in Caryl Churchill's play "Love and Information," that questions our 'digital age,' presented through April 3 by Antaeus Theatre Co. in Glendale. (Photos by Jenny Graham)
(Left) Darius De La Cruz and Kevin Matsumoto. (Middle) Erin Pineda and Kwana Martinez. (Right) Kwana Martinez and Lloyd Roberson II. Cast members in Caryl Churchill’s play “Love and Information,” that questions our ‘digital age,’ presented through April 3 by Antaeus Theatre Co. in Glendale. (Photos by Jenny Graham)

Here is a sampling of things to do in the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles area, March 2-9.

 

EVENTS

UCLA March First Thursday: Westwood Village Farmers Market, noon-4 p.m. March 2. During the market hours, the American Red Cross gives instructions on CPR, answers questions about the organization, giving blood and being prepared for natural disasters. Also, test your knowledge of disaster preparedness when you spin a trivia wheel. The “First Thursday” picks up again with a “Game On! Evening Block Party” that celebrates UCLA Athletics and includes sports-theme activities, entertainment, face painting, food carts and trucks, 7-10 p.m. March 2. Make a reservation, free, here: bit.ly/41zDTED. Location, 1031 Broxton Ave. (between Kinross Avenue and Weyburn Place), Westwood. www.facebook.com/UCLA. uclafirstthursdays.splashthat.com

AlienCon: Lectures and panel discussions on unexplained mysteries and marketplace, 8:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. March 4 and 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. March 5. Autographs and photo opportunities are an extra fee (see the schedule). Schedule: www.thealiencon.com/schedule/#/schedule/byHour. Admission $65 for one-day pass; $120 Weekend pass; $349 Cosmic Pass (see the website for details and other passes). Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E. Green St. www.thealiencon.com

Dinosaurs in the Valley: An outdoor, immersive walk-through to see life-size and life-like animatronic dinosaurs. Dates: March 3-5. Admission is by timed-entry; must be purchased in advance online; daytime or nighttime options. Admission $24.99 plus fees. Check the website for information on additional activities for children; additional fee for each; to be purchased at the venue. Parking $10 plus fees (when you purchase admission). Frequently asked questions: bit.ly/3UXM61b. Pierce College, use parking lot entry at Victory Boulevard at Mason Avenue, Woodland Hills. www.dinosaursinthevalley.com/

Ventura Gem Show: The Ventura Gem and Mineral Society presents its “Diamond Jubilee” 60th annual event that includes exhibits of fossils, gems and minerals, demonstrations of lapidary arts, jewelry-making and vendors, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. March 4; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. March 5. The show also includes children’s activities, silent auction, raffle prizes and a plant sale. The society uses funds raised for a local college scholarship in the earth sciences and/or jewelry arts (winner to be announced at the show). Free admission. Fee for parking. Ventura County Fairgrounds, 10 W. Harbor Blvd., Ventura. 805-312-8467. Email: info@vgms.org. www.vgms.org

Santa Barbara International Orchid Show: The show “Orchids — The Adventure Returns” includes garden exhibits, floral arrangements, marketplace of orchid plants, orchid-theme art and photography exhibit, growing supplies and demonstration workshops, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. March 10-12. Admission $20; free for ages 12 and younger; three-day pass, $30. Earl Warren Show Grounds, 3400 Calle Real, Santa Barbara. Frequently asked questions: bit.ly/41EFgSo. www.sborchidshow.com

County Ventura St. Patrick’s Day Parade: Get an early start on celebrating St. Patrick’s Day (always on March 17) at the parade in the city of Ventura, 10 a.m. March 11. The parade’s theme is “Let’s Celebrate.” The gran marshal is Ventura Elks Lodge No. 1430, celebrating its 100th anniversary. Deadline to participate in the parade is March 2 (see the form and entry fee on the website). Parade route: Main Street and Lincoln Drive, west on Main for seven blocks, ending at North Fir Street. venturastpatricksdayparade.com

Black History Month Festival – Celebration and Solidarity: Event includes live musical and dance performances, a panel discussion on the impact of Black Americans in the entertainment industry, educational exhibits and local vendors, 4-10 p.m. March 11 (event was postponed from Feb. 25 due to weather conditions). Free admission. Third Street Promenade, between Broadway and Wilshire Boulevard, Santa Monica. www.facebook.com/SantaMonicaBlackLivesAssociation. Details on the schedule, bit.ly/3koEHeD

Bockbierfest: The Tiroler und Bayern Zither Club holds a traditional German spring event with entertainment by Bavarian dancers, music by the band Carrera and, of course, bockbier. Doors open, 6:30 p.m. March 18. Dinner, 7:30 p.m. Admission $50 ($55 if reservation is paid at the door). Reservations required by March 11. No refunds. Location, 12029 Burton St., North Hollywood. Reservations and questions to: Trudy, 818-353-6212 or Sue, 818-352-0668.

Los Angeles Marathon: The “Stadium to the Stars” event takes place on March 19 with runners and competitive wheelchair racers surging for 26.2-miles from Dodger Stadium to Century City. The 38th annual event has a slightly different finish line this year due to construction of a new Metro stop in Century City — the finish is on Santa Monica Boulevard at the intersection of Avenue of the Stars. The last day to register online for the marathon is March 15 (walk-up registration may be available on March 17-18 at Dodger Stadium; check the website). Prior to the marathon there will be two runs on March 18, solely at Dodger Stadium: LA Big 5K at 8 a.m. and the LA Big 1/2K Kids Run for ages 3-8 (register in advance for these races as they often sell out). Also, on March 17-18 there will be a free “Health and Fitness Expo” that is open to the public beginning at 10 a.m. on March 17, and also, 9 a.m. on March 18 (free parking; Dodger Stadium, Lot G, 1000 Vin Scully Ave., Los Angeles). The marathon begins for wheelchair and AWD participants at 6:30 a.m., followed by the runners at 6:55 a.m. Participants in the Charity Challenge 13.1 event begin at 8:15 a.m. The route goes through parts of Los Angeles, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Century City. To register and for more information, lamarathon.com

ONGOING EVENTS

Titanic – The Exhibition: Take an immersive and interactive tour of the White Star Line ship that hit an iceberg and sank on April 15, 1912 in the North Atlantic Ocean. Dates: March 16-19, 23-26 and 30-31; and dates in April. See re-creations of the interior and exterior, authentic White Star Line objects, recovered items and costumes and props from the 1997 film. Admission is by timed-entry and prices vary by day of the week (for weekdays $33.90 ages 13 and older; $30.50 ages 65 and older; $23.70 ages 4-12; VIP and VIP Plus admissions are also available. Beverly Event Venue, 4327 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles. FAQs section: bit.ly/3CXpyXT. Details and purchase admission here: bit.ly/3CRN60g

Stranger Things – The Experience: The 45-minute immersion in all things based on the Netflix show. Dates: March 3-5, 10-12, 17-19, 24-26, 31, and April 1-2. Unlock your power in the Hawkins Lab, enjoy an 80s-style medley of locations and fan-favorite moments, including photo ops, food and drink, and interact with performers. Fun dress code: 80s. Minimum recommended age: 13. Tickets start at $49. Location, 1345 N. Montebello Blvd., Montebello. strangerthings-experience.com/los-angeles/#faqs; feverup.com

ART

Valley Watercolor Society: The group holds its 2023 annual juried exhibition, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. March 2. Reception, 3-6 p.m. March 5. Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Thousand Oaks Community Gallery, 2331 Borchard Road, Newbury Park. valleywatercolorsociety.org

Santa Clarita Artists Association Gallery: “Colors of the Rainbow,” group show, opens March 3. Opening reception, 4-7 p.m. March 4. Gallery hours: 5-8 p.m. Friday; 1-7 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. Exhibit runs through April 9. Location, 22508 Sixth St., Newhall. www.santaclaritaartists.org and www.facebook.com/santaclaritaartists

ONGOING ART

Corey Helford Gallery: “Art Collector Starter Kit IX: A Group Show of 12 x 12 Works” and “Richard Ahnert: While We Wait.” Gallery hours: noon-6 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; and by appointment. Exhibits run through March 4. Location, 571 S. Anderson St., Los Angeles. 310-287-2340. coreyhelfordgallery.com

Arushi Gallery: “Komla Letsu Philip: Blissful Introspection,” a solo exhibit. Exhibit runs through March 6. Location, 1243 W. Temple St., Los Angeles. 213-440-2700. Artist biography: www.berjartgallery.com/artists/55-komla-letsu-philip.

Kohn Gallery: “Alicia Adamerovich: This is the time of the hour.” Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. Exhibit runs through March 11. Location, 1227 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles. 323-461-3311. adamerovich.com. kohngallery.com

L.A. Louver: “Alison Saar: Uproot” and “The Wine Dark Sea,” a group show. Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Exhibits run through March 11. Location, 45 N. Venice Blvd., Venice. 310-822-4955. www.lalouver.com

Nonaka-Hill: “Shuzo Azuchi Gulliver: Synogenesis.” Gallery hours: noon-7 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; and by appointment. Exhibit runs through March 11. Location, 720 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles. 323-450-9409. www.nonaka-hill.com

Brand Library and Arts Center: “Nexus IV: RAIZ.” The new, contemporary art exhibit is a group show with 60 Los Angeles-based artists. Exhibit is presented by Thinkspace Projects, California Cowboys Collective and Tlaloc Studios. Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday. Exhibit runs through March 17. Location, 1601 W. Mountains St., Glendale. 818-548-2051. www.brandlibrary.org. Details: bit.ly/3GOLl5b

Lowell Ryan Projects: “Carrie Mae Smith: Four Plates and Four Cups.” Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; and by appointment. Exhibit runs through March 18. Location, 4619 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles. 323-413-2584. Email: info@lowellryanprojects.com. www.lowellryanprojects.com; www.facebook.com/lowellryanprojects

Artist Co-Op 7: “Windows of Our Minds,” group show on the natural world by local artists Rosemary Altshuler, Adria Becker, Selina Cheng, Karen Alpert Entous, Denise Yarfitz-Pierre. Hours: 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Friday (closed on Saturday-Sunday). Exhibit runs through March 27. Encino Terrace Lobby Gallery, 15821 Ventura Blvd., Encino. www.co-op7.org

William Turner Gallery: “Julian Lennon: Atmospheria,” photography. A portion of the proceeds goes to the White Feather Foundation. Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Exhibit runs through April 1. Location, 2525 Michigan Ave., Site E-1, Santa Monica. 310-453-0909. Email: info@williamturnergallery.com. www.williamturnergallery.com

Roberts Projects: “Kehinde Wiley: Colorful Realm.” Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; and by appointment. Exhibit runs through April 8. Location, 442 S. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles. 323-549-0223. www.robertsprojectsla.com/

Hauser & Wirth: “Zeng Fanzhi” and “Rita Ackermann: Vertical Vanish.” Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Exhibits run through April 30. Location, 901 E. Third St., Los Angeles. www.hauserwirth.com

Women Painters West: “Portraits,” a juried exhibition. Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday. Exhibit runs through May 7. California Heritage Museum, 2612 Main St., Santa Monica. www.californiaheritagemuseum.org. womenpainterswest.org

BOOKS

Diesel, a Bookstore: John Sayles discusses and signs “Jamie MacGillivray: The Renegade,” 6:30 p.m. March 7. Cathleen Schine discusses and signs “Kunsters in Paradise,” 6:30 p.m. March 14 (reserve a seat with an order for the book here: bit.ly/3J2gxjE).  Location, 225 26th St., Santa Monica. 310-576-9960. dieselbookstore.com

Book Soup: Mae Coyiuto discusses her young adult book “Chloe and the Kaishao Boys,” 7 p.m. March 7. Zachary Sergi discusses “So You Wanna Be a Pop Star? A Choices Novel,” 7 p.m. March 9. Monica Heisey discusses her debut novel “Really Good, Actually,” 7 p.m. March 10. Olivia Harrison presents and signs “Came the Lightening – Twenty Poems for George,” 3 p.m. March 11 (first 30 in line are admitted for the talk; everyone else in line for signing only; rescheduled event from a previous date). Jim Mahoney discusses his memoir “Get Mahoney! A Hollywood Insider’s Memoir” with Alison Martino, 5 p.m. March 13. Dewar MacLeod discusses “Tommy, Trauma and Postwar Youth Culture,” 7 p.m. March 14. Karla Klarin discusses “L.A. Painter — The City I Know, The City I See,” 7 p.m. March 15. Book Soup, 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. 310-659-3110. www.booksoup.com

Vroman’s Bookstore: Cara Black discusses “Night Flight to Paris,” 7 p.m. March 8. Michelle Dowd discusses her memoir “Forager: Field Notes for Surviving a Family Cult,” 7 p.m. March 9. John Sayles discusses “Jamie Macgillivray: The Renegade’s Journey,” 3 p.m. March 11. Arielle Estoria discusses “The Unfolding – An Invitation to Come Home to Yourself,” 7 p.m. March 13. Kristin Hannah discusses “The Four Winds,” 7 p.m. March 14. Location, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. 626-449-5320. vromans.com

Chevalier’s Books: Tara Schuster discusses “Glow in the F*ing Dark: Simple Practices to Heal Your Soul, from Someone Who Learned the Hard Way,” 6 p.m. March 9. Location, 133 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles. 323-465-1334. www.chevaliersbooks.com. Make a reservation to attend: bit.ly/3KTjjcB

Annabelle’s Book Club: Mae Coyiuto discusses and signs her young adult book “Chloe and the Kaishao Boys,” noon March 11. Rebecca Serle discusses and signs “One Italian Summer,” 2-4 p.m. March 18. Firooz Zahedi discusses and signs his book of celebrity photographs “Look at Me,” 2:30-4:30 p.m. March 19. Location, 12200 Ventura Blvd., Studio City. 818-683-7323. annabellesbookclubla.com

The Salt Eaters Bookshop: Nic Stone discusses “Chaos Theory,” 7 p.m. March 21. Register to attend. Location, 302 E. Queen St., Inglewood. thesalteatersbooks.com

CHARITY/VOLUNTEER

Our House Grief Support Center’s Walk ‘n’ Run for Hope: Register for the 5K event around Lake Balboa, 7:30 a.m.-noon April 30. Registration fee $40/$30 children (March 1-30); $45/$35, April 1-29; event day $50/$40). The event location, Woodley Park, 6076 Woodley Ave., Van Nuys. ourhouse-grief.org/runforhope

LA Sanitation and Environment’s City Facilities Recycling Program’s Clothing Drive: Donations of new or gently-used (washed and clean) jackets and sweaters, pants, shirts and socks for children, men and women are accepted through March 3. Items may be donated, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday. Two locations in the San Fernando Valley: East Valley District Yard, 11050 Pendelton St., Sun Valley, and West Valley District Yard, 8840 Vanalden Ave., Northridge. See other drop-off locations on the website. 213-485-2260. Email: san.cfrp@lacity.org. lacitysan.org

Flair Cares Food Drive – Hang Up Hunger: The 8th annual food drive at Flair Cleaners locations in Studio City and Valencia runs through March 31. Drop off nonperishable boxed and canned food (no glass jars or expired dates) during business hours. Donations go to the North Hollywood Interfaith Food Pantry and the nonprofit Santa Clarita Grocery. Donations by customers will be matched up to 250 pounds per location. Customers who donate receive a 50%-off coupon on a dry cleaning order on a future visit. Locations: 4060 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Studio City (818-761-3282; flaircleaners.com/locations/studio-city) and 27011 McBean Parkway, Valencia (661-753-9900; flaircleaners.com/locations/valencia). Also contributing to local food pantries are the Redondo Beach and Santa Monica locations. www.facebook.com/flairdrycleaners; flaircleaners.com

Tujunga Monday Night Bingo with Knights of Columbus: The organization holds the game night that generates funds for local charities. Early bird games, 6:30 p.m., and regular games at 7:30 p.m. Bingo games are set for multiple Monday dates. Buy-in $15. Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, auditorium, 7144 Apperson St., Tujunga. Details on Eventbrite: bit.ly/3S22nkb

Volunteers Cleaning Communities: Join the group for clean-up projects in the San Fernando Valley. Find a list of upcoming projects, and also how to make a donation for clean-up supplies, volunteerscleaningcommunities.com

DANCE

Benita Bike’s DanceArt: Los Angeles Mission College’s AGS Honor Society and its Department of Arts, Media and Performance presents the performance, 7 p.m. March 16. Dancers: Nola Gibson, Lauren Gold, Micay Jean, Lydia McDonald, Skye Schmidt. Free admission. AMP Theater Recital Hall at Los Angeles Mission College, 13356 Eldridge Ave., Sylmar. 818-470-5734. www.danceart.org/performances and www.facebook.com/benitabikesdanceart

Louise Reichlin & Dancers: The company presents the premier of “Gotta Get Up” plus “Reboot! Reboot!” and all six dances reimagined from “Urban and Tribal Dances” (“Alone,” “Batida,” “War,” “Wedding,” “Together,” “Remembrance”), 1:30 p.m. March 18. Free admission. Culver City Senior Center, 4095 Overland Ave., Culver City. 213-458-3066. lachoreographersanddancers.org/News

DINING

Ruth’s Chris Steak House – TasteMaker Dinner Series: A Belle Glos Wine four-course dinner, 6:30 p.m. March 2. Fee $130 plus tax and tip. Reservations required. Location, 6100 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Woodland Hills. Make a reservation here: www.ruthschris.com/promotions/tastemaker-dinners/

DISCUSSION

Poaching of California Native Plants: The San Fernando Valley Iris Society presents a talk on the topic, and in particular on Dudleya or live-forever plants, by Ken Niessen, a botanist with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Ventura Field Office, 7 p.m. March 2. Canoga Park Women’s Club, 7401 Jordan Ave. 310-529-8871. sanfernandovalleyirissociety.org and   www.facebook.com/sanfernandovalley.irissociety

Culinary Historians of Southern California: Sarah Lohman discusses “Endangered Eating — America’s Vanishing Food,” 10:30 a.m. March 11. Free. Reservations requested on Eventbrite: bit.ly/41zInev. Use garage parking at 524 S. Flower St., Los Angeles (take ticket for parking with you and get it validated if you have a library card; see details on the website for parking instructions). Los Angeles Central Library, Mark Taper Auditorium, 630 W. Fifth St., Los Angeles. Updates/upcoming: www.facebook.com/chsocal. www.chsocal.org

Left on the Shelf – Found Musical Compositions by Eden Ahbez: The Little Landers Historical Society presents a talk by Craig Durst about the composer (“Nature Boy,” made popular by Nat King Cole) who lived for a time in Big Tujunga Canyon, 1 p.m. March 11. Free admission/$3 donation suggested. Bolton Hall Museum, 10110 Commerce Ave., Tujunga. 818-352-3420. Email: llhs@boltonhall.org. www.facebook.com/boltonhallmuseum; www.boltonhall.org

MUSEUM

Grammy Museum: March 4: “Shakira, Shakira: The Grammy Museum Experience,” through winter 2024. Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday-Friday and Sunday; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. Admission $18; $15 ages 65 and older; $12 ages 5-17 and college students with ID. Location, 800 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles. 213-725-5700. grammymuseum.org

Japanese American National Museum: March 4: “Don’t Fence Me In: Coming of Age in America’s Concentration Camps,” through Oct. 1 (www.janm.org/exhibits/dont-fence-me-in). Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday; closed on national holidays. Admission: $16; $7 ages 62 and older and children; free for ages 5 and younger (timed advance tickets required; no walk-ins). Location, 100 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles. 213-625-0414. Facebook: www.facebook.com/jamuseum. janm.org

Natural History Museum Los Angeles County: March 5: The “Butterfly Pavilion” returns in an open-air netted enclosure, through Aug. 13. (timed admission, $8, with a general museum admission; nhm.org/butterflies). Hours: 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Monday (closed on Tuesday). Admission $15; $12 seniors and students with an ID; $7 ages 3-12. Location, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles. nhmlac.org

The Getty Center: March 14: “Pastel Portraits: Drawn from Life?” through Sept. 17. Ongoing special exhibits: “A Passion for Collecting Manuscripts,” illuminated manuscripts from the Getty Center’s collection, through April 23. “Our Voices, Our Getty: Reflecting on Drawings,” written interpretations about drawings from the Getty collection that were personally selected by 23 interns enrolled in the Getty Marrow Undergraduate Internship Program, through April 30 (details here: bit.ly/40xC5vg). “Connections – Asia,” five works of art are displayed near European artwork made around the same time (various galleries; on loan from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art), through May 7. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Free admission but a timed-ticket admission is required for now (bit.ly/2SbTzys). Parking $20 (www.getty.edu/visit/center/parking-and-transportation). Getty Center Drive at North Sepulveda Boulevard, Los Angeles. 310-440-7300. www.getty.edu

Petersen Automotive Museum: New: “Arsham Auto Motive,” life-sized vehicle sculptures and posters (www.petersen.org/exhibits). Ongoing special exhibits: “Hypercars: The Allure of the Extreme, Part II,” through May 14. “Inside Tesla – Supercharging the Electric Revolution,” prototypes of Tesla vehicles, historical perspective and design study, through Oct. 22. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. Admission $19; $17 ages 62 and older; $12 ages 4-17. Location, 6060 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. 323-930-2277. www.petersen.org

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum: March 24: “Auschwitz — Not long ago. Not far away.” Minimum age recommendation: 12. Purchase tickets in advance ($29.95; $26.95 ages 62 and older; $22.95 ages 11-17; details on the exhibit and tickets: bit.ly/3ZnnHW1). This special exhibit is scheduled to run through Aug. 13. Regular museum hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily (regular admission: $16; $13 ages 62 and older; $9 ages 11-17; $6 ages 3-10. Purchasing admission in advance is recommended but not required, bit.ly/3f1Aecr). Location, 40 Presidential Drive, Simi Valley. www.reaganfoundation.org

ONGOING MUSEUM

Academy Museum of Motion Pictures: Ongoing special exhibit: “Regeneration: Black Cinema 1898-1971,” through July 16. Timed advance admission tickets are available for the museum that explores the art and science of movies and movie-making. Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday-Thursday; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday-Saturday. Admission $25; $19 ages 62 and older; $15 students; free for ages 17 and younger; $15 extra for “The Oscars Experience.” Location, 6067 Wilshire Blvd. (corner of Fairfax Avenue), Los Angeles. 323-930-3000. academymuseum.org

African American Firefighter Museum: Artifacts, fire apparatus, pictures and stories about African American Los Angeles firefighters. Hours: 1-4 p.m. Sunday. Donation. 1401 S. Central Ave., Los Angeles. 213-744-1730. www.aaffmuseum.org

Autry Museum of the American West: Ongoing special exhibit: “Masters of the American West,” through March 26 masters.theautry.org. Museum hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Admission $14; $10 ages 60 and older, ages 13-18 and students with ID; $6 ages 3-12. Location, 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles. theautry.org

California African American Museum: Ongoing special exhibit: “Adee Roberson and Azikiwe: because i am that,” through May 7 (lobby gallery; all other galleries are closed for upgrades). Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. Free admission. Parking $15 before 5 p.m.; $18 after 5 p.m. (in the blue structure parking lot; entrance to the blue structure is on Figueroa Boulevard at 39th Street.). Location, 600 State Drive, Los Angeles (in Exposition Park). 213-744-7432. www.caamuseum.org and www.facebook.com/CAAMinLA/

California Science Center: Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. Admission is free to the center but there is a charge for special exhibits. Location, 700 Exposition Park Drive, Los Angeles. californiasciencecenter.org

Descanso Gardens: Ongoing special exhibit: “Shiki: The Four Seasons in Japanese Art,” in the Sturt Haaga Gallery and runs through May 21. Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. The gallery is open, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Admission $15; $11 ages 65 and older and student with valid ID; $5 ages 5-12. Location, 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintidge. 818-949-4200. descansogardens.org

Discovery Cube Los Angeles: Ongoing special exhibit: “PAW Patrol : Adventure Play,” a hands-on and immersive exhibit, through May 14. The exhibit is based on the preschool series of the same name on Nickelodeon (produced by the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis). Ongoing: Hands-on exhibits make science fun. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. Admission $15.95 ages 15 and up; $13.95 ages 3-14. Location, 11800 Foothill Blvd., Sylmar. www.facebook.com/TheDiscoveryCube. www.discoverycube.org

Forest Lawn Museum at Forest Lawn-Glendale: Ongoing special exhibit: “Bob Baker Marionette Theater: 60 years of Joy & Wonder,” through March 19. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Exhibit runs through March 19. Location, 1712 S. Glendale Ave., Glendale. 323-340-4782. forestlawn.com/exhibits-and-community-events/museum/

Fowler Museum at UCLA: Ongoing special exhibit: “Visualizing Devotion: Jain Embroidered Shrine Hangings,” through March 26. Hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. Free admission. Parking directions: enter from Sunset Boulevard at Westwood Plaza, turn left into the pay-by-space area of Lot 4 (198 Westwood Plaza). Location, 308 Charles E. Young Drive N., Westwood. https://fowler.ucla.edu/

The Getty Villa: Ongoing special exhibit: “Nubia: Jewels of Ancient Sudan,” through April 3. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Monday. Free admission, but a timed-entry reservation is required. Parking $20. Location, 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades. www.getty.edu/visit/villa/

Holocaust Museum LA: Ongoing special exhibit: “From the Danube to the Pacific: Reinventing Home, the Artwork of Dave Fox,” through April 16. Hours: 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Wednesday and Friday-Saturday; 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Thursday. Admission $15; $10 ages 65 and older; free for ages 17 and younger. Free admission on Sunday and Thursday. Admission is by timed admission ticket. Location, 100 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles. 323-651-3704. Email: info@hmla.org. www.holocaustmuseumla.org

Italian American Museum Los Angeles: Ongoing special exhibit: “A Real Boy: The Many Lives of Pinocchio,” through Oct. 16. Hours: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Admission free; donations requested. Location, 644 N. Main St., Los Angeles. 213-485-8432. www.iamla.org

Japan House Los Angeles: Ongoing special exhibit: “Designing With Disaster – Stories from Seven Regenerative Cities, Inspired by the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami,” through April 2. Hours: 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Friday; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Free admission. The museum is at Ovation Hollywood, 6801 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood. 800-516-0565. www.japanhouse.jp/losangeles

Los Angeles County Museum of Art: Ongoing special exhibits: “Reexamining the Grotesque: Selections from the Robert Gore Rifkind Collection,” through March 5. “New Abstracts: Recent Acquisitions,” through May 29. “Another World: The Transcendental Painting Group, 1938-1945,” through June 19. “Coded: Art Enters the Computer Age, 1952-1982,” through July 2. “Pressing Politics: Revolutionary Graphics from Mexico and Germany,” through July 22. “Afro-Atlantic Histories,” with six sections including Maps and Margins, Enslavements and Emancipations, Everyday Lives, Rites and Rhythms, Portraits, Resistances and Activism, through Sept. 10, 2023 (the touring exhibit originated in Brazil). Plan your visit information here: bit.ly/2P3c7iR. Admission $20; $16 ages 65 and older and students ages 18 and older with a valid ID, free for ages 17 and younger (reserving/purchasing an advance, timed-entry online is recommended). Location, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. 323-857-6010. www.lacma.org

LA Plaza Cocina: Ongoing special exhibit: “The Legacy of Chocolate,” through April 30. The museum is dedicated to Mexican food and cuisine. The museum has a teaching kitchen and a store with culinary-related ingredients, cookbooks, decorative items and utensils used in making Mexican cuisine. Hours: noon-5 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday). Free admission. The museum is part of LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes. Location, 555 N. Spring St., Los Angeles. 323-397-8365. Email: cocina@lapc.org. lapca.org/

LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes: Ongoing special exhibit: “Arte para la Gente — The Collected Works of Margaret Garcia,” through June 11. Hours: noon-5 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. Free admission. Location, 501 N. Main St., Los Angeles. www.lapca.org

Museum of African American Art: Current exhibit: “Aiseborn: From the HeArt,” art from the Inglewood-born, contemporary muralist and painter, now through April 30. Make a reservation to visit on the form here: www.maaala.org/schedulevisit.html. The museum is located at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza, third floor, 4005 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles. 323-294-7071. www.maaala.org

Museum of Contemporary Art: Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday and Friday; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Admission is free but an advance online timed-entry ticket is required. Special exhibits are $18; $10 seniors and students; free for ages 11 and younger. Locations: the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA , 152 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles; MOCA Grand Avenue, 250 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. 213-633-5351. www.moca.org/visit

Museum of the San Fernando Valley: Ongoing special exhibit: “Ritchie Valens” exhibit. Hours: 1-5 p.m. Tuesday; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Rancho Cordillera del Norte, 18904 Nordhoff St. (southwest corner of Nordhoff and Wilbur Avenue), Northridge. 818-347-9665. themuseumsfvnow.org/

Rancho Camulos Museum: Rancho Camulos is the only National Historic Landmark in Ventura County. Throughout the year, the museum is open for tours, 1, 2, and 3 p.m. on Sundays. Donation $5; $3 for children. Directions: from the 5 Freeway, take the exit to Highway 126, travel 3.5 miles west of the Ventura County Line. The entrance is on the south side of the roadway. The museum is two miles east of Piru. Location, 5146 E. Telegraph Road. 805-521-1501. Email: info@ranchocamulos.org. ranchocamulos.org

Santa Monica Art Museum: “Looking West,” emerging and established regional artists, through April 9 . Hours: noon-8 p.m. Thursday-Friday; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Admission $10 (purchase tickets online). Location, 1219 Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica. www.santamonicaartmuseum.com/visit-us

Santa Monica History Museum: Ongoing special exhibit: “Broadway to Freeway — Life and Times of a Vibrant Community,” through April 30. Hours: 3-8 p.m. Thursday; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Sunday. Admission $5; free for ages 11 and younger. Location, 1350 Seventh St., Santa Monica. 310-395-2290. www.santamonicahistory.org

Skirball Cultural Center: Ongoing special exhibits: “Fabric of a Nation: American Quilt Stories from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,” through March 12. Also, “Together for Good: Caron Tabb and the Quilting Corner” and Chloë Bass: Wayfaring.” Hours: noon-5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Closed for Jewish and national holidays (www.skirball.org/visit). Admission is by advance time-entry ticket for special exhibits, including “Noah’s Ark at the Skirball,” ($18; $15 seniors and students with ID; $7 ages 2-12; www.skirball.org/visit). Location, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. 310-440-4500. skirball.org

Valley Relics Museum: Take a trip down San Fernando Valley memory lane, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 25-26 (choose other dates from the drop-down menu). Admission $15 and up. The museum is located at 7900 Balboa Blvd., Hangar C3 and C4, entrance is on Stagg Street, Van Nuys. Purchase tickets: bit.ly/3kWHgjx; www.facebook.com/valleyrelics; valleyrelicsmuseum.org

Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University: Ongoing special exhibit: “To Bough and To Bend,” exhibition of trees by 30 artists and the ecological issues that the art brings up, through March 26. Gallery hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Free admission. Location, 24255 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu. 310-506-4851. Details: bit.ly/3B20jmD

Wende Museum of the Cold War: Ongoing special exhibit: “(De) constructing Ideology: The Cultural Revolution and Beyond,” through March 12. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Sunday (wendemuseum.org/about-us/visit). Free admission. Location, 10808 Culver Blvd., Culver City. 310-216-1600. 310-216-1600. Email: visit@wendemuseum.org. wendemuseum.org

MUSIC

El Portal Theatre: Dionne Lea, with Keith Harrison Dworkin, 7:30 p.m. March 2-3 ($35; $45). The Kingston Trio, 7:30 p.m. March 8-9 ($65 and up). Location, 5269 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood. 818-508-4200. elportaltheatre.com 

Camerata Pacifica – Chamber music concert: Program is an “All-Bach: concert, 8 p.m. March 2. Tickets $68. Zipper Hall at the Colburn School, 200 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. This program will also be performed, 7:30 p.m. March 3 (Music Academy of the West, 1070 Fairway Road, Santa Barbara) and 3 p.m. March 5 (Museum of Ventura County, 100 E. Main St., Ventura). cameratapacifica.org/concerts

The Canyon: Traveling Wilburys Revue, with School of Rock Woodland Hills, March 3 ($25). War, with Carry on Band, March 4 ($48). Jerrod Niemann, with Big Mike and the Reckonin, March 5 ($33). Gordon Lightfoot, with Max Gomez, April 21 ($58; rescheduled from 2022). Headliners begin at 8 p.m. Ticket price listed is standing room only; table tickets require dinner purchase. Check website for other ticket prices, added ticket fee, dinner options and reservations. 28912 Roadside Drive, Agoura Hills. 888-645-5006. wheremusicmeetsthesoul.com/canyon-agoura-hills/

Yamato – The Drummers of Japan: The group performs their program “Hinotori: The Wings of Phoenix,” 3 p.m. March 4. Tickets $36 and up. The Soraya at CSUN, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. 818-677-3000. Details and to purchase tickets: www.thesoraya.org/calendar/details/yamato-2023

UCLA Gluck Woodwind Quintet Ensemble: Enjoy the concert, 3:30 p.m.  March 4. Granada Hills Branch Library, 10640 Petit Ave. 818-368-5687. Details: bit.ly/3ZhmQVZ

Mandy Gonzalez and Javier Muñoz – Hitting New Heights: The Broadway stars of “Hamilton” and “In the Heights” perform, 8 p.m. March 4. Tickets $32.50 and up. Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts, Smothers Theatre, 24255 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu. 310-506-4522. arts.pepperdine.edu. Details and to purchase tickets: bit.ly/3ImHxsB

Adam Sadberry: The flutist, from the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, performs a recital, 2 p.m. March 5. Pianist Nathan Cheung joins Sadberry for the recital. Tickets $28. Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts, Raitt Recital Hall, 24255 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu. 310-506-4522. www.adamsadberry.com. arts.pepperdine.edu. arts.pepperdine.edu/events/2022-2023-season/adamsadberry.htm

Sitkovetsky Trio: Program includes music by Rachmanioff, Mendelssohn and a new work by Los Angeles-based composer Julia Adolphe, 7 p.m. March 5. Tickets $76. The Soraya at CSUN, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. 818-677-3000. sitkovetskytrio.com. Details and to purchase tickets: bit.ly/3mjdniu

Kariné Poghosyan: The California State University, Northridge alumna performs music by Khachaturian, Rachmaninoff and Gershwin, 8 p.m. March 8. Tickets $76. The Soraya at CSUN, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. 818-677-3000. karineplays.com. Details and to purchase tickets: bit.ly/3SGqmH9

JD Souther: 7 p.m. March 9. Tickets $45 and up. Bank of America Performing Arts Center, Scherr Forum Theatre, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. 805-449-2787. bapacthousandoaks.com. Details and tickets: bit.ly/3l0ov3n

The Best of Broadway and Everything Else: Valley Opera and Performing Arts presents a concert, with headliner Dylan F. Thomas, and the VOPA Orchestra and the VOPA Rocks band, 7 p.m. March 11 and 3 p.m. March 12. Tickets $30 and up; $55 VIP (bestofvopa.bpt.me). Sally Field Performing Arts Center, on the campus of Birmingham Community Charter High School, 17000 Haynes St., Lake Baloba. 818-727-7844. voparts.org

Dakha Brakha: Ukrainian quartet performs, 8 p.m. March 11. Tickets $50.50 and up. The Theatre at Ace Hotel, 929 S. Broadway, Los Angeles. cap.ucla.edu

St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland: Kerry Irish Productions present the concert that includes dance, 2 p.m. March 12. Tickets $50; $55. Bank of America Performing Arts Center, Scherr Forum Theatre, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks, 805-449-2787. bapacthousandoaks.com. Details and tickets: bit.ly/3khPpDM

Charles Lloyd 85th Birthday Celebration: The Charles Lloyd Ocean Trio and the Charles Lloyd Chapel Trio perform, 8 p.m. March 18. Tickets $36 and up. The Soraya at CSUN, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge. 818-677-3000. charleslloyd.com. Details and to purchase tickets: bit.ly/3INUex4

THEATER

Love and Information: Antaeus Theatre Co. presents a play by Caryl Churchill that questions our current “digital age” with easy connections with others but also alienation and anger, preview 8 p.m. March 2. Opening night, March 3 is sold out. Show runs 8 p.m. March 4; dates through April 3. Tickets for previews $20; regular tickets $40; $35 seniors; $25 college students; $20 high school students. Location, Kiki and David Gindler Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Broadway, Glendale. antaeus.org

Under Construction 3 – New Play Slamfest: The Road Theatre Co. presents readings of new plays. “The Sporting Life” by Marjorie Muller, 8 p.m. March 3. “Alisha Firewind” by Ryan Elliot Wilson, 8 p.m. March 4. “Memory of Winter” by Tira Palmquist, 2 p.m. March 5. “Singularities or the Computers of Venus” by Laura Stribling, 7:30 p.m. March 5. Check the website for description of plays. Tickets $15. NoHo Senior Arts Colony, 10747 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood. roadtheatre.org/event/uc3-new-play-slamfest

Theatre West’s New Works Play Festival 2023: Readings of full-length plays that were developed in the company’s Writers Workshop, 7:30 p.m. every Tuesday through May 9. A new play by Michael Van Duzer, 7:30 p.m. March 7 (check the website for the description). Masks are required. Free admission. Theatre West, 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. W., Los Angeles. 323-851-7977. www.facebook.com. TheatreWest/www.theatrewest.org

The Human Comedy: Actors Co-op Theatre Co. present the world premiere of the play by Thom Babbes, based on the novel by William Saroyan, 8 p.m. March 10. Show runs 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 2:30 p.m. Sunday; through April 23. Also, 2:30 p.m. March 18 and April 1. No shows April 7-9. Tickets $35; $30 ages 60 and older; $25 students with ID. David Schall Theater, 1760 N. Gower St., Hollywood. 323-462-8460. www.actorsco-op.org

ONGOING THEATER

The First Deep Breath: A play by Lee Edward Colston II about an esteemed and proper church and “pillar of the community” family whose secrets are going to be revealed.” Minimum age: 14; adult subjects. Show runs 7:30 p.m. March 2-3; 1 and 7 p.m. March 4-5. Tickets $39 and up. Geffen Playhouse, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Los Angeles. www.geffenplayhouse.org/shows/the-first-deep-breath/

Happiest Man Alive: Show runs 8, 8:45, 9:30 and 10:15 p.m. March 3-4. Minimum age: 16. Tickets $20 online; $25 at the door. Zombie Joe’s Underground Theatre, 4850 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood. 818-202-4120. www.zombiejoes.com

Twelve O’ Clock Tales with Ava Gardner: One-woman play performed by Alessandra Assaf and written by Assaf and Michael Lorre. Show runs 2 p.m. March 5. Tickets $25. Whitefire Theatre, 13500 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks. 818-687-8559. www.whitefiretheatre.com

Harold and Maude: The Group Rep presents a stage adaptation of the 1971 film by Colin Higgins. Show runs 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; through March 19. Tickets $35; $30 seniors and students with a valid ID. Lonny Chapman Theatre, main stage, 10900 Burbank Blvd., North Hollywood. 818-763-5990. thegrouprep.com

How I Learned to Drive: The Pulitzer Prize winning play by Paula Vogel about a teen girl, who lacks a father at home, whose uncle helps to teach her things. Minimum suggested age: 13 (adult themes). Show runs 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday; through March 19. Tickets $30; $20 seniors and students with valid ID. Sherry Theater, 11052 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood. 323-860-6569. Collaborative Artists Ensemble: bit.ly/3x2FvIW. howilearnedtodrive.brownpapertickets.com

Love…Or Best Offer: The Group Rep presents a romantic comedy by Phil Olson, about online dating. Show runs 4 p.m. Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday; through March 19. Tickets $25; $20 seniors and students with ID. Upstairs at the Lonny Chapman Theatre, 10900 Burbank Blvd., North Hollywood. 818-763-5990. www.thegrouprep.com

Calvin Berger, a Musical: The Colony Theatre presents the musical by Barry Wyner, based on the play of Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. Show runs 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday; through March 26. Tickets $45 for previews; $75 opening night; $55 for other dates. Location, 555 N. Third St., Burbank. www.colonytheatre.org. www.colonytheatre.org/calvin-berger

Let Me In: A dark comedy by Brynn Thayer about love and loss. Show runs 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday; through April 2. Tickets $35. Theatre 68 Arts Complex, The Rosalie, 5112 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood. 818-691-3001. theatre68artscomplex.com

Hansel and Gretel: Theatre West’s Storybook Theatre presents a musical retelling of the fairy tale with book by Lloyd J. Schwartz and lyrics and music by Hope and Laurence Juber. Show runs 1 p.m. Saturday through June 3. The show will be performed with American Sign Language on March 18. Tickets $15. Theatre West, 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. W., Los Angeles. 323-851-7977. www.theatrewest.org

Submit calendar listings at least two weeks in advance to holly.andres@dailynews.com. 818-713-3708.

RankTribe™ Black Business Directory News – Arts & Entertainment

Commissioner McCoy Announces $4 Million Initial Investment into Landmark African-American Memorial in Fort Bend County; Commemorates Texas’s First Black State Representative and Kendleton History

On February 27, 1886, Fort Bend County’s trailblazing Benjamin Franklin Williams – a former slave-turned State Representative, the very first Black legislator in Texas history, one of 10 Black constitutional delegates during Reconstruction, and one of the forefathers of Kendleton – passed away. On this same day 136 years later, Fort Bend County’s Commissioner Dexter L. McCoy took to the stage, steps away from Williams’s resting place, and announced a landmark $4 million investment into the very same community Williams helped establish.

Kendleton, one of the very first freedmen’s communities established after Emancipation, is home to a breadth of important, yet underrecognized Texas history. Williams aside, the town’s descendants also include Barbara Jordan, the legendary Houston Congresswoman whose father preached to the community, as well as Walter Moses Burton, the first African-American Sheriff in Fort Bend County history. “This memorial will commemorate the Black experience, not only in Fort Bend County, but in Texas, and really be reflective of the stories from Kendleton all the way to Congress and beyond.”

Commissioner McCoy was joined by a bipartisan medley of local officials, reflecting the apolitical, unifying nature of this solemn project. He was joined on-stage by Former Congressman Pete Olson, Architect Gregory Hines, and Kendleton Mayor Darryl K. Humphrey, Sr. Other elected officials in attendance included Sheriff Eric Fagan, Treasurer Bill Rickert, District Attorney Brian Middleton, County Attorney Bridgette Smith-Lawson, and Constable Mike Beard, among others. Also present were representatives of Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher, County Judge K.P. George, and Commissioners Andy Meyers and Grady Prestage.

Olson was outspoken and passionate about the importance of the investment and the legacy that it speaks to. The former Republican Congressman opined: “This is a great day – a celebration of the heart and soul of Fort Bend County.” Olson recently found Williams’s tombstone buried face-down in the mud while conducting a research project, and has since led a months-long community service effort to restore the dilapidated burial sites. “I was surprised, angry, disgusted, and hurt by what happened to his grave, and every grave in this park,” he remarked.

Olson pointed out that of the three service events he’s organized at the site, only one person has shown up every time: Commissioner McCoy. “The first time he came out was Juneteenth … and [he] said, ‘If I’m elected to be Commissioner, I will fix this within my first 100 days in office.’ Well, Dexter lied. He did that in less than 60 days.”Commissioner McCoy was joined by a variety of local community organizations, including FBC Heritage Unlimited, Black Cowboy Museum, S.O.J.E.S, NAACP Missouri City & Vinicity Branch, Fort Bend Green, Fort Bend Master Naturalist, and Daughters of the American Revolution Alexander Hodge Chapter. Also present were direct descendants and family members of those buried here.

Commissioner McCoy announced that in the coming months, his office will host community engagement sessions to help imagine the programmatic aspects of the memorial, including subsequent additions and next steps. “This is going to be a multi-phase project which will require a great deal of community support.” McCoy hopes that “…by this time next year, we will be well on our way in breaking ground on this most historic and monumental location.”

Interested parties can view the event stream here, and McCoy’s Twitter thread on the history and enduring legacy of Benjamin Franklin Williams here.

Tommy Kha’s Memphis

About this series: Memphis has played muse over the years to artists across the spectrum, from the music of Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Al Green, and the collective at Stax Records, to the prose of Peter Taylor, Shelby Foote, and John Grisham. Visual artists, too, have been inspired by Memphis, whose look has been described as gritty, dirty, active, eerie, beautiful, and captivating. “The Mind’s Eye” profiles the photographers whose work documents the city, including Bob Williams, Murray Riss, Saj Crone, Karen Pulfer Focht, Willy Bearden, Jamie Harmon, Brandon Dill, Ziggy Mack, Ernest Withers, Houston Cofield, and Andrea Morales.


Tommy Kha is lying on the floor, looking up. I’m late to meet him, but he seems unperturbed. “They gave me the rotunda!” Kha exclaims.

The domed lobby of Memphis Brooks Museum of Art was once home to Nam June Paik’s Vide-O-belisk. Where that 20-foot tower of TVs stood, now there is a green blanket with Tommy Kha on it. He’s wearing a black leather motorcycle jacket and dark-blue jeans. A stray lock emerges from his studiously tousled hair, which he occasionally has to brush away from his eyes — like Clark Kent, by way of Elvis. We’ll get to his gaze later. I notice his brown leather boots are unzipped.

“I want people to lay down,” he says.

So I do. The green blanket (“It’s a dye sublimation on a fleece fabric,” Kha says) is textured like the grass of the nearby Overton Park Greensward, where, for 61 years, Memphis College of Art students lounged around between classes, seeking inspiration. Kha achieved his BFA from the now-defunct art school in 2011.

On the ceiling of the rotunda (above) is a giant eye, staring back at me. My “Wow!” echoes, sent back to me by the geometry of the dome. Kha turns and gives me the biggest smile I will see from him during this visit home — the rotunda’s acoustics are one of the reasons he wants you to experience this piece from the floor.

Upon closer inspection, Eye Is Another is fashioned from hundreds of individual photographs. “I wanted to activate the space as a photo mosaic, forming an eyeball from this accumulation of pictures I took over the years,” Kha says. “It’s modeled after my eye, but I made it blue, like Elvis’ eyes.”

The eye’s whites and blues come from pictures of puffy clouds in the sky that the photographer has been taking since 2014. Until recently, he never really knew what to do with them. “Some of these are from previous residencies I’ve had at Crosstown, or the Civil Arts project at the World Trade Center,” he says.

For someone whose art-world fame comes primarily from his controversial self-portraits, this David Hockney-like montage is unexpected. “Patty Daigle, one of the curators here, and I were talking about it since my Crosstown residency last year,” Kha says. “This is kind of like a — I hate that word now — ‘sampling’ of the directions I’ve been heading towards since lockdown and the pandemic, and things I’ve been interested in.”

“He’s not actually physically present in any of the photos that are on view, but I think his presence is still there,” says Daigle, the Brooks’ associate curator of modern and contemporary art, in a later phone interview. “He doesn’t really stick to one format, or to one type of photography. He embraces experimentation. I think he’s always pushing himself, pushing even the medium of photography.

“He’s just a really smart guy and he thinks really deeply,” she continues. “I know that sometimes doesn’t come off, because he also is so funny and kind of unassuming. He has a great sense of humor, but he also has a really critical mind. You don’t see that right off the bat, but I think if you spend some time with his work, you start to realize that he’s after something deeper.”

Eye Is Another invokes an oculus, the apex hole Roman architects included in their domes, most famously in The Pantheon. “It’s supposed to be the eye of God,” Kha says. “I like that it sort of looks judge-y.”

Several large-scale photos are mounted around the mezzanine level, including one exterior of Lotus, the legendary Vietnamese restaurant on Summer Avenue. “These are mostly from the book, but also thinking a lot about the Southern landscape,” he says, referring to Half, Full, Quarter, his first monograph, published this February by the prestigious photo-centric publisher Aperture.

Tommy Kha is having a banner year. His art can currently be seen in group exhibitions at Kingston, New York’s Center of Photography at Woodstock; the Southeast Museum of Photography in Daytona Beach, Florida; and as part of the 20th anniversary exhibition of New Orleans’ Ogden Museum of Southern Art. “The Ogden was the first museum that took me seriously,” Kha says.

In New York City, where Kha has lived for the better part of a decade after earning his MFA, he’s in Queer Love: Affection and Romance in Contemporary Art at The Bronx’s Lehman College Art Gallery and the East Village’s La MaMa Galleria. The week after I found him lying on the floor of the Brooks, he opened his solo show Ghost Bites at the Camera Club of New York with a book launch party for Half, Full, Quarter.

Beside the faux grass on the rotunda floor is another dye sublimation crowded with images of food and Chinese newsprint. This was all done in-camera, says Kha. “I don’t Photoshop — I don’t have time to Photoshop!” he laughs. “I’m just thinking about pictures. This was the first thing I did. I was initially thinking of community and thinking how my family would often gather — and we still do this — we would put down newspapers and put down a hot plate in the middle.”

It’s an image that resonates with Daigle. “Being an Asian-American woman growing up in the South, it’s this idea that you might be presenting different selves to different people. Depending on who you’re interacting with, there can be multiple senses of self that you present to others — and I don’t think this is a singular experience for Asian Americans.”

Eye Is Another is part of the inaugural Tennessee Triennial for Contemporary Art, a new series which Daigle says is “meant to show the country — and even the world — all of the contemporary art that’s going on in our state.”

“The theme for the Tennessee Triennial is repair,” says Kha. “I was thinking of pulling together these different aspects of my work into something fun for myself. I could do these straightforward photographs of my relationships to the American South in ways that also reflect some experiences for people. This South, the land itself, is so charged with histories of destruction and creation.”

When Memphis magazine editor-in-chief Anna Traverse Fogle first proposed Tommy Kha for our annual Mind’s Eye feature, a series showcasing the life and work of our city’s best-known photographers, I volunteered to do the story. Kha and I have been friends since we met in the Memphis film scene, so I texted him the good news.

“Ooooh, well I kinda feel I should bow out as I think there are other folks way more interesting than I am!”

But Fogle was determined that Kha was the right choice, so I ambushed him with a phone call. He’s a genuine star in the art world now, and is being pulled in a thousand directions. He agreed to do the story on the condition that it would not be just about him, but also the Memphis community that made him. “We’ll do something different, I promise,” I told him.

I’m not sure he believed me.

It’s Friday, January 27, 2023. Afternoon light streams through the windows of artist Rahn Marion’s studio inside First Congregational Church. Tommy Kha is here to see Marion’s new work, and I’m tagging along. Arms crossed, Kha stands in front of a group of wood carvings on a paint-splattered shelf. “Do you imagine them side by side, like a wall full of them?” he asks. “Or on pedestals, like individually?”

Marion points out one intricately carved pylon with a rather sad face. “This one is part of a bigger piece that I had for TONE [the local Black arts and culture nonprofit]. It was right out of quarantine and I had a solo show there. She’s usually wrapped up like the Virgin Mary.”

What begins as a quick jaunt to see the massive backdrops Marion paints for the church’s sanctuary turns into an impromptu tour of First Congo, as it’s affectionately known in Cooper-Young. We make a point of going to the basement. At the bottom of a red staircase is a door with a sign that reads Theatre South.

“Remember when I was the bouncer here?” says Kha.

This hundred-seat theater was once the MeDiA Co-Op, a hub of the raucous Memphis independent film scene of the aughts.

“It was actually the Memphis Digital Art Cooperative,” says filmmaker Morgan Jon Fox, one of the organization’s co-founders. “It was a group of ragtag, mostly at the time activist-oriented DIY filmmakers who got space in the basement of a church to start a co-op. Some of it was born out of what was previously the DeCleyre Cooperative, which kind of paved the way for the concept of co-ops in Memphis.”

Artist and journalist Eileen Townsend remembers the scene. “It went through several incarnations, but at the time, 2002 to 2005, it was a radical anarchist house that had a lot of early 20-something activists living there,” she says. “The name comes from a famous anarchist, [Voltairine] de Cleyre. It was also attracting a fringe of art kids, who later lived there.”

“‘Live’ is a very loose word,” says Kha. “I was couch surfing. That’s a nice phrase to say I was squatting there.”

Anarchist energy collided with emerging technology at the MeDiA Co-Op. They saw the promise in the combination of increasingly powerful desktop computers and affordable digital video cameras. “Our activist-minded, co-op brain, was like, ‘Yeah! This medium is now democratized! We can share this information! Everyone should have access to it,” says Fox. “There were people who were able to access the tools of filmmaking, when there was no other way in their lives that they could have ever done it. That’s what the digital revolution was all about.”

Kha was one of the diverse group of regulars at the weekly filmmaking workshops. “What I remember so distinctly when he first started coming was that his mom would bring him and sleep in her car during the workshop,” says Fox. “We all wished we had that kind of support — whether she understood at the time what he was after or not.”

At the MeDiA Co-Op, one minute you’d be editing an experimental video, the next you’d be called to act in someone’s feature film. “I got murdered a lot in horror movies,” remembers Kha.

“He was always making photos, from the time we were very young,” says Townsend. “He was an extremely quiet kid. Very shy, but always showing up and making photos about what the Memphis scene was like as a teenager.”

One of Kha’s earliest subjects was musician Valerie June, who played regularly in Cooper-Young. “I think Tommy was 15 when we first met, and I was probably 20,” she says. “We met in the coffee houses in Memphis, like Java Cabana, and we’ve been best friends ever since. My first impression was that he was very, very bright and super smart, like a genius wizard. He was passionate about his art and his craft. I knew he would be famous one day.”

We return to Marion’s studio, where he shows us another painting, this one based on a tarot card. The Tower depicts a lightning bolt striking a castle, as a crown and two figures fall from the burning windows. “Everything’s falling apart, and it’s in chaos,” Marion says. “But it can also mean rebirth and regrowth. Something failed, so something else has to happen.”

Sounds of stomping feet, followed by chanting, come from upstairs. “That’s Decarcerate Memphis,” says Marion. “They’re training for the protest tonight.”

Our conversation turns serious. In a few hours, the videos of Tyre Nichols’ murder at the hands of Memphis police will be released. Nichols was an aspiring photographer. He was returning to his mother’s home after capturing the sunset, like the shots that make up the dark center of Kha’s Eye Is Another.

As Tommy and I leave First Congo, we run into activist Amber Sherman in the parking lot. The community organizer is in a hurry, trying to have multiple conversations at once. She is followed by a documentary cameraperson. I think about the anti-gay-conversion therapy protests of 2005, which were captured by MeDiA Co-Op cameras for Fox’s documentary This Is What Love In Action Looks Like.

That night, Sherman would lead hundreds of people who marched onto the I-55 bridge, risking their lives in search of a better Memphis. Their demands to speak with the mayor went unanswered.

Tommy was always around with his camera, taking shots of what was going on in the films,” says Maritza Dávila.“I met him through my husband [Jon Sparks] and daughter [Jackie] because they were acting in independent films here in Memphis.”

Dávila is a printmaker who taught at Memphis College of Art until it closed in 2020. “Tommy looked older, and you know, now he is always young looking. But he looked so mature back then, when he told me he was planning on going to MCA. I felt, of course you should apply! It was love at first sight. He’s such a gentle person, and such a creative person, so thoughtful and purposeful.”

Kha flourished at MCA. The school’s photography program was designed by Haley Morris-Cafiero, whose book Wait Watchers documented people’s cruel public reactions to her appearance. The people in these street images didn’t know they were being photographed while they were mocking the photographer, and sometimes Morris-Cafiero would share a knowing look with the camera.

This idea of a photograph as a secret message from the artist to the audience would have a profound effect on Kha. Once a more traditional street photographer, he began to carefully stage his images. He dressed in costumes for self-portraits. He made a mask of his own face and inserted it in strange situations. His mother became a frequent subject. He initiated Return to Sender, a series of images depicting men kissing him while he kept an eye open, addressing the camera. Sometimes he looks at the viewer the way people looked at him when he was a young, misfit Asian guy in Memphis.

“It’s personal, and because of his experiences, it reaches many people at different levels,” says Dávila. “He’s a storyteller. He thinks about every element within his photography. He has a poise that he takes when he is part of the subject matter. It’s his attitude, and how the other characters act towards him. The way he looks at you — because he looks at the viewer — is very telling. He’s asking you to think.”

When Kha was nearing the end of his undergraduate work at MCA, he applied to Yale for graduate school. “No one told me to,” he recalls. “I just followed the instructions on the application and prayed.” He was accepted to the Ivy League school. Dávila says Kha is one of MCA’s greatest success stories.

After earning his MFA at Yale, Kha moved to New York City, where he joined the ranks of the restless strivers who give the metropolis its manic energy. “He’s been grinding it out in New York for a long time,” says Townsend. “Yale is something that helps you, for sure, but it doesn’t mean that you’re immediately an art star. You move to the city. You don’t have a studio. You’re working very hard on other people’s shoots. It takes a lot of resilience to continue to believe in your work and just keep showing up every day — especially when you see some of your classmates having immediate, stratospheric success. But Tommy is incredibly persistent. He’s always been that way.”

On another recent day, I’m sitting with Kha at a table in the middle of Crazy Noodle. It’s one of his favorite Memphis restaurants.

“Do you want to talk about the airport?” I ask.

This is the moment he’s been dreading. “Not really,” Kha says. “I guess, if that’s what people want to hear about …”

Kha grew up close to Graceland, and the cult surrounding Elvis has remained a source of fascination for him — especially the tribute artists, whom he returned to Memphis to photograph every year. “The way he photographed the Elvis impersonators, it’s still portraiture, but it feels like it’s a universe of its own, and it’s so uniquely his,” says Fox. “I think it’s truly beautiful”

In 2020, that tradition was interrupted by the pandemic. Kha says riding out the calamity in his tiny New York apartment was a trying, and paranoia-inducing, experience. “Do I risk my life to get on the subway and go to work?”

Work has always been Kha’s solace. Before the pandemic, he was getting used to rejection from galleries. “One was like, ‘You should either stick with making work about being Asian or being gay, but you can’t be both. We can’t sell that.’ Well, I’m not a salesman. It’s not what I do.”

By early 2022, his work was getting noticed on larger stages. He had landed a coveted residency at the World Trade Center.

Meanwhile, the Memphis Shelby County Airport Authority was completing a $245 million renovation. The new Concourse B was designed to greet visitors with more than 60 pieces of contemporary art by local artists in an exhibit coordinated by the UrbanArt Commission. In Kha’s telling, he was initially reluctant to take part. The images he submitted from the Return to Sender series were rejected. “I assume because of the same-sex kissing,” he says.

Ironically, the image he chose as a “safer” replacement would become the most controversial of his career. Constellations VIII depicts Kha in a blue kitchen — or rather, a cardboard cutout of him, dressed in one of Elvis’ distinctive, late-career jumpsuits, his gaze directed outward, toward the viewer. “I think it’s a beautiful, tender image,” says artist Joel Parsons, an art professor at Rhodes College, where he also directs the Clough-Hanson Gallery. “It’s lovely, it’s vibrant, and there’s a complexity to it. I feel ambivalence in it. I feel different emotions, and that’s what makes it great art. That’s also what makes it difficult to put into a public context, because most people don’t appreciate mixed feelings, the way artists do.”

Soon after Concourse B’s January 2022, grand opening, an Elvis fan named Jon Daly posted his picture of Constellations VIII hanging in the airport on Facebook. “The city of Memphis has forgotten Elvis fans,” he wrote. “What a joke.”

Soon, the Airport Authority was being bombarded with angry messages.

“What does this represent?” “What is it advertising?”

“Who is that supposed to be in the jumpsuit?”

Eileen Townsend covered the controversy for the Memphis Flyer in a March 2022 cover story. “Basically, they couldn’t see an Asian guy in an Elvis suit without thinking that it was a joke,” she says. “There’s a lot of baked-in racism in the way we look at images, and that was present in the whole discourse around that image.”

An emergency Zoom call was convened. “The first thing I said to UrbanArt and the airport people was an immediate apology,” Kha recalls. “I’m so sorry that this Facebook rumbling is causing this distraction from the show at the airport. We wanted it to be a space for all the artists that have paved the way and are still living in Memphis. I just felt so guilty that it shifted the whole show, and that’s what was everyone was talking about, when there’s all these other, great, amazing artists.”

The call ended in acrimony, and Airport Authority CEO Scott Brockman made the decision to take down the artwork. Word spread through Kha’s social network, and from there spilled over to national and international news outlets. “I thought I was proud of the way the city had grown,” says Valerie June. “People from me to Craig Brewer to [journalist] John Hubbell, everyone was on text with each other and calling and talking about it, in the sense of, ‘Oh my god, this is not who we are.’”

“Their official reasons — what they said was — they read it as a parody, or that he was mocking Elvis in some way,” observes Dávila. “But I don’t think those reasons were well thought through. I think they were just racist, frankly, considering we have Elvis impersonators from every single culture. Elvis does not belong just to a group of people. He’s an icon to the world.”

The backlash the Airport Authority received for removing the art was exponentially larger than the outcry which had led to its removal. Brockman reversed course and Constellations VIII returned to the walls three days after it was expelled. Now, the place where it hangs is a popular selfie spot for art-loving travelers.

“I think it shows the power of art to create great change in a world of heaviness and darkness,” says Valerie June. “People think that art is light, like this dream that’s soft and fluffy. But if you look at the dream of Dr. King, it was a beautiful idea, but it wasn’t something you can really hold. It’s something that we’re still fighting for, its completion, the beauty of it. Art is a lot like that. You can’t really hold all that it makes you feel. When people saw that piece, they felt a movement, and they felt some change. Some people were against that movement, that change. It’s the power of art to create this space. It doesn’t have to use words, it doesn’t have to give speeches, it doesn’t have to get involved in politics, but it is making great change in the world.”

After the airport affair, Tommy Kha was suddenly everywhere. “I never made that much in sales before last year, or had much luck talking to museums,” he says.

Joel Parsons was the only artist on the board of the UrbanArt Commission during the kerfuffle. “I was disappointed by the reaction, but not shocked, because I know how art gets treated when it goes out into the public realm,” he says. “We came up with this idea of doing an exhibition that might give us a chance to contextualize the work. There’s so much of what happened in that situation which felt like misunderstanding and ignorance. And we felt — I felt — like Tommy was owed a chance for people to really dig into his practice, to really see what it was about outside of the noise and all of the … misguided, I’ll say, conversations around the airport work.”

When Parsons broached the subject, “The first thing [Tommy] said was, ‘Let’s do a group show. Let’s bring other people in this conversation.’ He was very generous, knowing that he’s got the spotlight right now, he’s got a lot of energy coming his way, and he wanted to turn around and spread that to other people, right from the beginning. I think that’s a beautiful indication of the art world that he’s making, and how he thinks about the community around him.”

The Ecstasy of Influence: Mid-South Artists Centering the Margins opened at the Rhodes College Clough-Hanson Gallery on January 20th and runs through March 10th. It includes Kha’s kissing portrait that was originally rejected from the airport show, print work from Kha’s early mentor, Maritza Dávila, photographer D’Angelo Lovell Williams, and multimedia artists Ahmad George and Richard Lou.

“We knew that there were connections between them, but we realized collectively that those connections were deeper,” says Parsons. “I didn’t know that Tommy was an old family friend of Maritza, or that Ahmad George was a student of hers. They had never shown their work together in the same show. We kept unpacking all these connections. It was like, a six degrees of Tommy Kha kind of situation.

“Tommy didn’t invent this kind of work in Memphis,” Parsons continues. “He’s standing on the shoulders of some really amazing artists, and there are also people coming along behind him.”

By the first week of February 2023, Tommy Kha is back in New York City, preparing for his solo show and the release of Half, Full, Quarter, which critic Tony Wilkes has called a “haunting portrait of America’s Asian diaspora.”

When I call Kha to work out the final details of this story, he sounds exhausted, and a little overwhelmed by all the hoopla.

I tell him, “I think I have a title for the story.”

“What is it?”

“Tommy Kha’s Memphis.”

There’s a pause. “Oh no,” Kha whispers. “That’s too much.”

RankTribe™ Black Business Directory News – Arts & Entertainment

Unsolved Cold Cases Re-Open with Revolutionary New Game, Crimetrip

Unsolved Cold Cases Re-Open with Revolutionary New Game, Crimetrip – African American News Today – EIN Presswire

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Black women ages 20-50 are twice as likely to have high blood pressure than White women, says new study

Black women face a significantly higher risk of developing high blood pressure (hypertension) in their childbearing years, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Researchers from UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester, Massachusetts, analyzed data that was collected from 1,293 women between 2001 and 2018. 

The women were all between the ages of 20 and 50 and had high blood pressure.

Black women were found to be more than twice as likely to have uncontrolled blood pressure than White women. Additionally, Black and Hispanic women were more likely to have obesity than White women.

BISEXUAL WOMEN MAY FACE A HIGHER HEART DISEASE RISK, NEW RESEARCH SUGGESTS

The American Heart Association defines uncontrolled blood pressure as measuring 140/90 mmHg or higher. 

For comparison, a normal blood pressure range is less than 120/80 mmHg.

Black women were found to be more than twice as likely to have uncontrolled blood pressure than White women, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Black women were found to be more than twice as likely to have uncontrolled blood pressure than White women, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. (iStock)

“Our study showed that Black women of child-bearing age with hypertension are more likely to have uncontrolled pressure than White women even after controlling for social determinants of health, medical conditions and lifestyle,” lead author Claire Meyerovitz, a fourth-year medical student at UMass Chan Medical School, told Fox News Digital by email. 

“Over the 18-year period studied, this disparity has continued and worsened.”

Lawana V. Brown, MSN, who is based in South Carolina, is director of the Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner online program at Regis College. She was not involved in the study; she views the results as concerning but not surprising. 

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“As an African American health care provider, I realize that we have an issue with hypertension in this community that is more significant than in other communities,” she told Fox News Digital in an email. 

Many of Brown’s family members and patients have experienced hypertension issues — and she herself was diagnosed with it in 2018, she said. 

Hypertension poses risk during childbirth

Approximately 17.6% of women in their childbearing years experience hypertension, the researchers found.

“Identifying and addressing factors that contribute to disparities in blood pressure control is especially important for women who may become pregnant, since high blood pressure is a leading cause of pregnancy-related death and disability,” Meyerovitz said.

The American Heart Association defines uncontrolled blood pressure as a reading of 140/90 mmHg or higher. A normal blood pressure range is less than 120/80 mmHg.

The American Heart Association defines uncontrolled blood pressure as a reading of 140/90 mmHg or higher. A normal blood pressure range is less than 120/80 mmHg. (iStock)

“Although hypertension is a treatable, common and chronic condition, it is a leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths and severe disease,” senior study author Lara C. Kovell, M.D., a cardiologist at the UMass Chan Medical School, told Fox News Digital in an email. 

“The United States has much higher rates of pregnancy-related deaths than economically similar countries — and Black women are disproportionately affected.”

Approximately 17.6% of women in their childbearing years experience hypertension.

Black, Hispanic and Asian women were found to have a higher risk of stroke or “severe morbidity” during delivery. 

Black women were also three to four times more likely to die during childbirth than White women.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines severe maternal morbidity as “unexpected outcomes of labor and delivery that result in significant short- or long-term consequences for a woman’s health.”

Food access, dietary choices play a role

When comparing each ethnic group — 59.2% were White, 23.4% were Black, 15.8% were Hispanic and 1.7% were Asian — the researchers also found that Hispanic and Black women experienced food insecurity more than White women.

Food insecurity, as defined by the FDA, is “a lack of consistent access to enough food for every person in a household to live an active, healthy life.”

The researchers found that Hispanic and Black women experienced food insecurity more than White women. "Food insecurity and a lack of access to healthy foods have been shown in other studies to increase the risk of high blood pressure," said one of the authors of the new study.

The researchers found that Hispanic and Black women experienced food insecurity more than White women. “Food insecurity and a lack of access to healthy foods have been shown in other studies to increase the risk of high blood pressure,” said one of the authors of the new study. (iStock)

One out of every four Black women and one in three Hispanic women were found to lack access to healthy foods.

“Food insecurity is important when thinking about high blood pressure since sodium levels are higher in many lower-cost food options such as canned, ultra-processed and fast foods,” said Dr. Kovell. 

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“Moreover, food insecurity and a lack of access to healthy foods have been shown in other studies to increase the risk of high blood pressure.”

The study did not detect a difference in blood pressure between Hispanic women and White women, despite the fact that Hispanic women experienced a greater degree of food insecurity.

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“Diet is very much a key to better health outcomes,” said Brown of South Carolina. “The African American diet has traditionally included fried foods that are highly seasoned and have high amounts of sodium, and this can contribute to hypertension.”

“Prepared or processed foods also tend to be easy and cheap choices, and these often contribute to poor health outcomes.”

She added, “Since we all lead busy lives, prepared or processed foods also tend to be easy and cheap choices, and these often contribute to poor health outcomes.”

Lead author Meyerovitz said that to her, the findings suggest other factors at work as well — including racism, discrimination and stress.

"Although hypertension is a treatable, common and chronic condition, it is a leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths and severe disease," said the lead author of a new study. "The United States has much higher rates of pregnancy-related deaths than economically similar countries — and Black women are disproportionately affected."

“Although hypertension is a treatable, common and chronic condition, it is a leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths and severe disease,” said the lead author of a new study. “The United States has much higher rates of pregnancy-related deaths than economically similar countries — and Black women are disproportionately affected.” (iStock)

Stress is a factor, as the ‘strong Black woman’ narrative impels some to hide their fatigue and emotions,” said Brown, who is African American, on this point. 

“Chronic stress is often associated with health conditions such as hypertension.”

Study had limitations, researchers say

Although the study included a large and diverse sample of women, the researchers admitted some limitations.

The study only looked at women in the U.S. and relied on self-reported survey data. 

Also, it did not account for differences in subgroups within the larger ethnic groups.

The new study looked only at women in the U.S. and relied on self-reported survey data. In addition, it did not account for differences in subgroups within the larger ethnic groups. There were other limitations as well. 

The new study looked only at women in the U.S. and relied on self-reported survey data. In addition, it did not account for differences in subgroups within the larger ethnic groups. There were other limitations as well.  (iStock)

Additionally, only one blood pressure measurement was included for each woman — and there was no data on whether prescribed medications were taken as directed.

Healthy lifestyle choices are key

To help counter the higher risk of elevated blood pressure, Dr. Robert Salazar, a cardiologist at Memorial Hermann in Houston who was not involved in the study, said maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a must.

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Regular exercise, fresh foods and an avoidance of excess sodium remain the mainstay for optimal health,” Dr. Salazar told Fox News Digital in an email. 

“Additionally, patients should have regular follow-ups with their physician to allow for assessments of general health, including mental health and medication adjustments as needed.”

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The study authors recognize that more research is needed in this area. 

“We undertook this study to help explain the U.S. maternal mortality disparity, but we still have a lot of work to do to understand the differences in maternal mortality between White and Black women,” Dr. Kovell said.

50 years in, Whitman-Walker builds future in underserved Southeast D.C.

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Fifty years ago, the clinic that would become Whitman-Walker Health cared for gay men underground, in a Georgetown church basement. Appointment reminders were delivered discreetly as services shifted to anonymous gray buildings that blended into the cityscape.

Today, the Southeast D.C. location is a bright blue, green and pink house on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, reflecting how the nonprofit’s footprint has evolved to match progress in combatting stigma toward LGBTQ people and patients with HIV.

And as construction crews put the finishing touches on the health center’s $30 million, seven-story, glass-encased home at the new Max Robinson Center a mile away, Whitman-Walker leaders say they’re focused on expanding expertise built serving the LGBTQ community since the early 1970s to provide affirming, welcoming care to a medically underserved portion of the District.

“Building on our long history of service in Ward 8 and also recognizing that this is a historically un-invested-in community that has a fair amount of medical mistrust, we will be working a lot on our community engagement efforts,” said Whitman-Walker CEO Naseema Shafi.

The new center on the St. Elizabeth’s East campus, set to open in late summer, will offer more of the primary, behavioral health and dentistry care and pharmacy services currently available at the existing clinic, as well as increased services for young people and substance abuse treatment and recovery programs. Mammography and ultrasounds will also be available.

Whitman-Walker takes private and public insurance such as Medicaid and Medicare and offers a sliding payment scale.

The 118,000-square-foot center and its 60 exam rooms, eight dental chairs and 12 behavioral health rooms will be funded by a combination of private donations, commercial financing and federal grants, Shafi said. The current Max Robinson Center has four exam rooms, two dental suites and four behavioral health rooms.

“We know we can fill those seats,” said Abby Fenton, who oversees external affairs and philanthropy at the Whitman-Walker Foundation.

Whitman-Walker officials hope the new center will turn around the perception that patients get better care at its Northwest D.C. location, a building outfitted in modern finishings at 1525 14th St. whose neighbors include a Sotheby’s real estate office and an art gallery.

Of the nearly 17,000 patients seen by Whitman-Walker providers last year, three-quarters went to 14th Street, while about 1 in 5 — 3,500 patients — went to the Max Robinson Center, said Rachel McLaughlin, Whitman-Walker’s vice president of population health and quality.

“We are looking to build better equity between the two sites that we have now,” Fenton said.

The new building sits in stark contrast to the well-loved and well-worn current center, which was retrofitted again and again since its opening in 1993 to accommodate evolving services and treatments. On a recent weekday afternoon, a ceiling tile was missing in the lobby, leaving wires exposed as visitors traversed a maze of hallways. Art decorates every corner of the homey but humble interior, where a hand-painted silver turtle promoted support, insight and courage. A framed red-satin section of the AIDS Memorial Quilt celebrates Max Robinson, the center’s namesake, who died of complications due to AIDS in 1988.

Whitman-Walker’s embrace of Robinson — the first Black co-anchor of a national nightly television news broadcast — told Deborah Wells, a mother struggling to stay off heroin and manage liver damage and hepatitis C, all she needed to know about seeking treatment.

“The name itself tells you who they are. That takes the stigma out of your condition. That tells me all are welcome,” she said Tuesday while on her way to one of two jobs.

Wells, 65, is a 14-years-sober grandmother, great-grandmother, college graduate and advisory neighborhood commissioner who says her longtime Whitman-Walker physician treats her physical needs and social needs, including by providing nutrition guidance.

“The atmosphere is just totally different. They are welcoming, which a health facility should be to make you feel like going there,” she said.

The new center is part of the overall redevelopment of the St. Elizabeth’s East campus, including the construction of Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center, GW Health, which city and health-care leaders hope will begin to reverse stark racial disparities in health outcomes for Black residents east of the Anacostia River.

Life expectancy is as low as 69 in Ward 8, compared to 83 or more in Wards 2 and 3 — a difference of 14 years, according to the D.C. Center for Policy, Planning and Evaluation.

Whitman-Walker and other health-care organizations with a presence in Ward 8 consider it part of their responsibility to bring care to Southeast, where residents have felt the legacy of systemic racism in a lack of access to health care, but also in housing, employment, access to food and transportation.

Maranda Ward, assistant professor of clinical research and leadership at George Washington University, praised Whitman-Walker as one of the District’s most progressive health organizations, especially when it comes to LGBTQ needs, but emphasized the importance of serving new patients’ unique needs.

“OK, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to transfer over one-to-one,” said Ward, who is the Ward 8 representative on the D.C. Commission on Health Equity. “Take the humility that came with that work and recognize when you don’t know something. It’s about literally partnering with groups at the forefront of this work.”

Shafi, the CEO, said Family Success Centers, DC Greens and Capital Area Food Bank refer clients to Whitman-Walker for care and the organization hosts events at the Smithsonian in Anacostia and the Congress Heights Arts & Culture Center. The organization also works with the University of the District of Columbia and Howard University to rotate students through their clinics.

“We think it’s really important that the people who provide care look like the community we serve,” Shafi said, adding: “We would almost be irrelevant if we weren’t listening.”

The front windows of the clinic’s 14th Street location in Northwest D.C. display bright graphics declaring “Always proud,” and “Trans lives matter,” as well as a Black Lives Matter statement affirming that racism is a public health crisis and that police violence destroys communities.

“We have much to learn from our patients and our communities. We are determined to dismantle the systems of oppression and racism through the work we do,” the statement says.

Inside, Whitman-Walker’s tagline “we see you” is echoed on a plaque reiterating the clinic’s 50-year history of providing care “with patience, kindness, humility and as much empathy as humanly possible” — a message providers hope resonates for patients with every reason to be skeptical of the medical establishment.

In addition to specializing in LGBTQ health, Whitman-Walker has always provided primary and dental care to anyone who needs it, and plans to expand those services to patients who may not be familiar with their care model, Shafi said.

Overall, 39 percent of the organization’s patients identify as gay or lesbian, 31 percent as heterosexual, 10 percent bisexual and the rest unknown or other. Less than a quarter of the care provided patients is HIV-related, Whitman-Walker data shows. White patients make up 42 percent of the clientele, compared to 39 percent Black or African American. About 20 percent of patients identify as Hispanic and 75 percent non-Hispanic, data show.

About 70 percent of Whitman-Walker’s patients live in D.C., and of those, 20 percent live in Wards 7 or 8. Fenton said officials hope to boost those numbers by 10,000 patients by 2025 with a simple message:

“We took care of your brother during the HIV epidemic. Why wouldn’t we take care of you?”

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