The Historic Ali Cultural Arts Celebrates Black History Month with Art Exhibition By Adewale Adenle

The Historic Ali Cultural Arts (www.aliarts.org) in Pompano Beach is proud to celebrate Black History Month with an art exhibition by Nigerian artist, Adewale Adenle. Beans, Rice & Gumbo: Facts, Fictions and Frictions of Black History narrates the history of blacks from the pre-slavery era through the present day. The exhibition runs from February 1, 2018 through March 29, 2018.

"Adewale Adenle is a provocative artist, author and educator whose art captures your attention with its boldness," said Cherolyn Davis, program and facilities manager. "For this exhibit, he is showcasing many historical portraits that will open a dialog from various perspectives."

This exhibition critically narrates the history of Africans and African Americans in a visual journey that confirms, challenges and channels new thoughts and revelations in history. Adewale, working from historic photos and descriptions, depicts the rich history of Ethiopia, Egypt and other African lands and then takes viewers through the agony of slavery, the triumph of the civil rights movement into today's successes and struggles.

"Through my portraits, I hope to take viewers back through history in a way that will provide new perspectives and open-up dialogues about important topics," explained Adenle, who is also an artist in residence at Bailey Contemporary Arts in Pompano Beach. "There has been a lot of misinformation and misinterpretation of the past, which I feel has led to a slave mentality that still pervasive today. I call it 'post traumatic slave disorder.' But if you take the time to explore history and connect to the past, I feel it will remove that mentality."

Adenle though his work, also imagines Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcom X speaking together. While this never happened, Adenle uses the image to express the different approaches to a similar goal.

"Art is an amazing way to present topics for discussion. We connect through art and we can heal from it as well," Adenle said.

About Adewale Adenle:

Adenle's paintings and drawings connect his background to observations intermingled with primary emotions and personal experiences that are basic to his growth, especially as they continue to influence socio-political discourse in his homeland (Nigeria) and intertwined with policies in his adoptive country, the US. He explores dual realities and logics in political constructs and systems, arriving at a three-dimensional work that vastly engages the viewer to unload and search for multiple logics in its interpretation. Within these dualities, he induces metaphorical slippages in relationships between objects and their context to form new meanings and expose contradictions in many conventional social structures.

Adenle has over 15-years of experience exhibiting his paintings and working as a political cartoonist/illustrator/art editor with various newspapers in Nigeria, the U.S and Great Britain. In the 90's, his acerbic socio-political cartoons and paintings were thorns in the flesh of dictatorial military regimes in Nigeria as the country was agitating for democracy.

He has won numerous awards and grants among which are the 2000 Reuters News Graphics Travel Award, which included an instructive participation at the Malofiej/ Show-Don't- Tell-workshops at the University of Navarra, Pamplona- Spain, and work experience at Reuters in London, UK. He has given lectures and workshops at Rochester Institute of Technology-New York, Amarillo College-Texas, Cartoonist Rights Network/State Department's Sponsored workshop in Douala, Cameroon, among others. From 2002 to 2004, 'Wale was a studio painter at Marcus Akinlana's WON Murals-New Orleans, where he assisted in executing several public projects including the murals for the Philadelphia International Airport, PA and Aurora Community Center, CO.

He is the author of "Mixed Feelings," a 15-year celebration/collection of his socio-political satire. Published in 1999, the book was collected by The University of California (Berkeley Library) for selected acquisitions in Africana Studies and catalogued at The Library of Congress, Washington, DC. His most recent public commission includes among others, "Congo Square" a 7ft x11ft cast bronze sculpture, commissioned by the city of New Orleans and installed at the Louis Armstrong Park.

The Historic Ali Cultural Arts:
353 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Pompano Beach, FL 33060 -- 954-786-7876.

About Historic Ali Cultural Arts:
The Historic Ali Cultural Arts is located in the former home of the late Frank and Florence Major Ali, who had emigrated from Cuba and The Bahamas respectively. As the first African American business owners in Pompano Beach, Frank operated a barbershop and Florence, who was a skilled seamstress, cosmetologist and fashion designer, also operated her business in the building. This two-story property was built in 1933 and placed on the City of Pompano Beach Historical Register in 2016.

The City of Pompano Beach, Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency and the Rock Road Restoration Historical Group preserve the northwest corridor history and culture by telling positive stories of the African American experience through performing arts, visual arts and intellectual work that educates and celebrates all people of color throughout history.

More information: http://aliarts.org/.

About the Pompano Beach Redevelopment Agency (CRA):
A Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is a dependent district established by City government for the purpose of carrying out redevelopment activities that include reducing or eliminating blight, improving the economic health of an area, and encouraging public and private investments in a CRA district. The CRA is governed by State Statutes, Chapter 163, Part III. The Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency is funded through Tax Increment Financing (TIF). The funds are collected as property values increase and a portion of that increase is captured by the Agency. TIF raises revenue for redevelopment efforts without raising taxes.

More information: http://pompanobeachfl.gov/index.php/pages/cra/cra.