Ali Black—If It Heals All
From the artist: If It Heals At All centers one Black woman's experience in Cleveland, Ohio. The project is a reflection of the violence, racism, illness, love and joy that is rooted in Cleveland. This project is meant to accompany Ali Black’s first book of poetry, If It Heals At All. The artist brings specific lines from the book to life to provide viewers with a unique experience of engaging with poetry. The bold, large scale lines of poetry are designed to amplify the voices of each speaker in each poem. The title focuses on healing, challenging viewers to question the healing process. Do Black folks ever truly heal from the ravages of racism? Do we ever stop grieving? What does it mean to heal? Are we ever healed from the illnesses that plague us? The project will showcase 3-5 large scale text-based pieces. The project will also include a public poetry reading where audiences will be able to hear the lines of poetry displayed from the exhibition read live. One text-based piece might showcase the line, “you think about the baby killed by the bullet,” which derives from the author's poem "Kinsman". At the public reading, Black will read “Kinsman” in its entirety. This pattern will continue for other poems.