Carrie Mae Weems

MAPPING HARLEM

Carrie Mae Weems x The Brotherhood Sister Sol

The Brotherhood Sister Sol has worked with Carrie Mae Weems since 2017. Weems is considered one of the most influential contemporary American artists, investigating family relationships, cultural identity, sexism, class, political systems, and the consequences of power. BroSis honored Weems at our Voices gala in 2017, she was our inaugural Artist in Residence in 2020 (along with Bill T. Jones), and she worked with our alum, The Peace Poets, on a national PSA campaign about the intersection of COVID and inequality. Weems has donated art work that hangs in our new building and inspires our young people each day and participated in public conversations with Khary Lazarre-White, our Executive Director, about the intersection of art and activism.

This summer, four members of BroSis – Arlene Perez, 14, Satnam Chaudhary, 18, Smeilyn Salcedo, 14, and Yaniel Garcia, 16 – were selected to participate in a photography project sponsored by Carrie Mae Weems along with our media arts instructor Frank Antonio López. They met for four weeks, discussing the works of Weems, Roy DeCarava and other prominent visual artists, to create a body of work that reflected their everyday life & community. The project entitled, “Mapping Harlem”, showcases images of family, friends, community members and spaces that our members value, found interest in and were curious about. BroSis aims to provide opportunities for our members to expand their artistic vision while building relationships & connections to the legacy of artists in our community.