Celebrate African American Art With Dance, Paintings, Poetry and Film on Myrtle Avenue

Myrtle Avenue will be transformed by art and performances this February in honor of Black History Month.

This year’s Black Artstory Month, The Altar: Rituals of Healing in the African Diaspora, presents the work of more than 30 Brooklyn artists on the theme of healing rituals within the African diaspora. Catch paintings, photography, film screenings, poetry readings and performance art along the street all month.

Black Artstory Month is a yearly arts festival that celebrates African American art and artists. Produced by neighborhood improvement group the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership, the program, now in its fifth year, taps a Brooklyn curator to involve the neighborhood in the arts festival.

“This long legacy of healing practices are by their very existence acts of resistance, aimed at regaining equilibrium and maintaining wellness for community, family and self in the face of social structures and societal trauma, said curator Suhaly Bautista-Carolina in a prepared statement. “This year, artists’ interpretations of the theme speak truths about our intentions in the world.”

After stints at Creative Time and the Brooklyn Museum, Bautista-Carolina is now director of programs at the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute in Harlem.

A party with dance, videos by BRIC and interactive art at the Ingersoll Community Center will kick off the month-long celebration. The following weeks will include poetry readings about preservation of rights and films that cover healing and resistance to injustice.

“Every year we are excited to create opportunities for local artists, celebrate our community’s rich African-American history, and invite new audiences to Myrtle Avenue,” said Meredith Phillips Almeida, executive director of the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership.

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The kick-off party will take place from 6 to 9 p.m., Friday, February 3. Exhibitions and events will run February 1 to February 28 at 15 businesses along Myrtle Avenue and other venues, including Ingersoll Community Center, Pratt, the Navy Yard and Leisure Life NYC.

A forthcoming map and more information on the program can be found here and here.

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