Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art to Present From Stono to Now: The Fire This Time
Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art to Present From Stono to Now: The Fire This Time — Black Resistance in American Art, 1739–Present
Stolen King by Kevin Williams
The Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art will present the traveling exhibition From Stono to Now: The Fire This Time — Black Resistance in American Art, 1739 to Present from March 21 through June 27, 2026, continuing the exhibition’s national tour following presentations at The ArtsXchange, Atlanta and most recently the Houston Museum of African American Culture.
Curated by Black Art In America Gallery, the exhibition examines nearly three centuries of Black resistance through the lens of contemporary and modern visual art. Drawing its conceptual foundation from the Stono Rebellion, one of the earliest and most significant organized uprisings of enslaved Africans in colonial America, the exhibition traces a continuum of resistance from 1739 to the present day.
“Black resistance is not a moment—it is a continuum,” says Najee Dorsey. “This exhibition honors the artists who have carried that fire forward.”
Through printmaking, painting, collage, and mixed media, From Stono to Now brings together works by artists whose practices confront power, document injustice, and assert Black humanity. The exhibition reframes resistance not as a series of isolated historical moments but as a sustained cultural practice embedded within Black artistic expression and passed from generation to generation.
The exhibition features works by:
Jamaal Barber, Elizabeth Catlett, Carolyn Crump, Najee Dorsey, Mel Edwards, Frank Frazier, Arturo Lindsay, Traci Mims, Bertrand D. Phillips and Kevin Williams,
Following strong engagement during its earlier presentations in Atlanta and Houston, the exhibition now arrives on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, expanding its national conversation on resistance and memory.
Exhibition Details
Exhibition: From Stono to Now: The Fire This Time — Black Resistance in American Art, 1739–Present
Dates: March 21 – June 27, 2026
Venue: Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art
Location: 386 Beach Blvd, Biloxi, MS 39530
