detail from Craig Lasha’s 1982 painting of Eddy & Leavenworth
Tenderloin Blackness Open House for SF First Thursday Art Walk
Come share your experience of Tenderloin Blackness to be included in the project!
at the Tenderloin Museum | 398 Eddy St. SF, CA 94102
Thursday September 5, 2024 | 5-7pm
Free | All Welcome!
Visit the Tenderloin Blackness exhibit, meet the curators, and share your experience of Tenderloin Blackness to be included in future versions of the show. TLM is open late (5-7pm) on 9/5 for September's SF FIrst Thursday Art Walk for an open house meets oral history session.
In August, Del Seymour and friends opened an exhibition that celebrates Black culture and history in the Tenderloin. For the SF First Thursday Art Walk in September, TLM hosts an open house for Seymour’s dynamic exhibition with an open invitation for folks to share their experiences of “Tenderloin Blackness.”
Tenderloin Blackness highlights the multitudes of the Black community by featuring Black individuals who comprise it and whose lives are intertwined with the neighborhood: a series of banner displays highlight some names who you may know–celebrated “fathers” of the TL like Rev. Cecil Williams and Leroy Looper–alongside present day activists, artists, leaders, workers, community members, residents etc. Tenderloin Blackness acknowledges Black folks in the Tenderloin for the remarkable individuals that we are, whoever we are. It’s an incomplete survey, but one that invites YOUR story, to shape the meaning of “Tenderloin Blackness,” and to contribute to the history of our city. Tenderloin Blackness begins at the Tenderloin Museum, but will move and grow throughout San Francisco’s places of arts, culture, history, and community.
For the iteration currently on view at TLM, the community profiles are complemented by a selection of artworks, such as paintings by Charles Curtis Blackwell, Sylvester Guard Jr., Craig Lasha, Lord Frederick, an excerpt of the Tenderloin Community Quilt organized by Mattie Loyce, and Seymour’s personal collection of African artifacts, as well as archival material from GLIDE and the Looper family.
Tenderloin Blackness is part of “Black History and Culture in the Tenderloin,” one of twenty-one projects created from the Tenderloin Community Action Planning (TCAP): a neighborhood-driven collaboration between residents, community organizations, businesses, non-profit partners, led by San Francisco Planning in close coordination with many other City agencies.The implementation of these projects is made possible by interagency and cross-sector collaboration that includes San Francisco Planning, Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development, Office of Economic Workforce Development, Department of Public Health, Human Services Agency, United Way Bay Area, as well as community leaders and entrepreneurs in the TL. Learn more about TCAPvia this link or at sfplanning.org