Black Art in America (BAIA) is a multifaceted arts company based in East Point, Georgia. Since 2010 BAIA’s mission has been to document, preserve and promote the contributions of African American artists. The BAIA Foundation (501c3) was developed in recent years, as a means to formalized and expand this community based work—through art access, education and artist development opportunities.
Divergent highlights BAIA’s many-sided approach to championing black visual culture. Anchored by the Black Art In America Collection, this showing of 24 works is a testament to Najee and Seteria Dorsey’s diverse collecting habits and journey in art. As their ‘art for all’ approach touches numerous collecting areas, citing works by: legacy; folk; contemporary and event international artists. It should also be noted that nearly half of the works exhibited here from the BAIA Collection are created by locally based artists, denoting the Dorsey’s active involvement in the Atlanta art scene.
As a complex entity, BAIA serves as an educational resource, gallery, art publisher, executor, foundation and collecting institution. With all things considered, works in the show attest to BAIA’s complexity, mission and tendency towards ideation over traditional models.
-Faron Manuel, Curator & Foundation Director
