WHAT:4th Annual Black Art Matters Festival WHERE: Zoom:Click here to register for access to the link WHEN: Thursday, March 4, 2021 at 7pm EST In partnership with the Black Student Union, Amherst College Multicultural Resource Center and Arts at Amherst Initiative, the Mead Art Museum is proud to support the fourth installment of the Black Art Matters Festival. In 2017, Zoe Akoto '21 noticed a lack of art by Black students on campus and started the Black Art Matters Festival as an affirmation and celebration of Black student artists and creators in the Five Colleges. This year, the festival will take place online via Zoom and feature performances and visual art by Black students at Amherst College. This program is free and open to all, but registration is required. Please use the link below to register for access to the Zoom link. Click here to register for access to the Zoom link and here to RSVP on Facebook In addition to our virtual festival, the Mead is proud to display a visual arts showcase highlighting work by Black student artists currently on campus. If you have permission to be on campus, please visit the Rotherwas Room from March 3 - April 18. We will share photos on our website and on social media for those who are not able to visit in person. In the meantime, check out the Mead's Black Art Matters Instagram campaign, featuring all of this year's participants, and read a preview article about the program by Katherine Duke. Student Participants Ashanti Adams '24 Rebecca Awuah'23 Lauren Bell '22 Zora Duncan '23 Isabelle Geneve '23 Michael Gibson Jr. '21 Kendall Greene '24 DeLyna Hadgu '21 Paul Jackson '22 Sterling Kee '23 Jonathan Paul '22 Danielle Reed '21 Maya Roberts '23 Abadai Zoboi '24 Festival Emcees Eve De Muheto '21 Melody Dodoo '21 BAM Planning Committee Zoe Akoto '21 (lead student organizer, BSU) Danielle Amodeo (Mead Art Museum) Olivia Feal (Mead Art Museum) Ellen Mutter (Arts at Amherst Initiative) Eboni Rafus-Brenning (Amherst Multicultural Resource Center) Gussie Weiss '23 (Mead Art Museum) Special thanks to all those listed above for their contributions to this program, and many other colleagues for their support, including Carol Allman-Morton, Roberta Diehl, Katherine Duke, Sheila Flaherty-Jones, Tim Gilfillan, Caroline Hanna, Willa Jarnagin, John Kunhardt, Stephanie Ramirez, Maria Stenzel, Aifer Talibi, Nicholas Taupier, and Luke Williamson '21.