Ciara Benham
Staff Writer
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Senior art major Jasmine Groves has brought Black History Month to life with a new art exhibition.

Her exhibition showcases photographs of black families, including her own and her friends’.

“I love that we have the ability to admire the past, but also move on,” Groves said.

She was inspired by the artwork of Mickalene Thomas, a black contemporary visual artist who is best known for her elaborate paintings. Groves decided to pay tribute to the history of the black families in the photographs.

“I want this exhibition to stand as a reminder of the strength of black families,” Groves said. “Especially during and after the civil rights movement in America.”

According to Groves’ artist statement, the civil rights movement and decades after were crucial to the African-Amerian family unit.

“Stories of segregation and perseverance are passed down from generation to generation, inspiring more current movements like “#BlackLivesMatter,” the artist statement said.

Three weeks before the art installation, Groves began recruiting photographs from fellow black and African-American students and friends. The results were an impressive collection featuring families from Kentucky to Rwanda.

Among these photos is one of the artist’s own family. The photograph features five generations of Groves’ family including her cousin, aunt, grandmother,  great-grandmother and her great-great-grandmother.

“For as long as we could, my family took a lot of pictures of the five of them as a testament to perseverance and love,” Groves said. “This one is my favorite because it was candid.”

Groves feels a special connection to these photos and loves to immerse herself in the stories they tell.

“When I look at these people, I imagine how they were feeling at that moment,” Groves said. “Maybe they were excited to spend the day with their friends, perhaps they were absentmindedly looking at something outside.”

She also said she views each of these photos as the ‘last page of a book,’ as they represent stories that have now ended.

“When the picture was taken, they could have been thinking about what they were going to cook for dinner that night or how they were going to resolve an issue with a loved one,” Groves said. “But now those stories have come to a close. They move on.”

Groves’ art exhibition is on display in the cases on the 7th floor of Prince Doyle Fine Arts until March 13.