Casita Maria Center for the Arts and Education is showcasing the art exhibition “Respect”, presenting inspirational creations by Timothy Okamura, Jessica Spence, and Nichole Washington. Casita Maria is a Latino charity that organizes impressive visual and performing arts and educational programs for the Bronx community. The exhibition’s drive is to live our authentic selves. By celebrating Afro Latinx and Black womanhood, each art creation reveals self-love and respect. It intends to build momentum, motivation, confidence and solidarity within the community.
Timothy Okamura’s mission is for his creations to appeal to various people. His goal is to pursue the spread of positive messages. This way art can build new gateways in communication. In his twenties while studying to perfect his craft, he realized certain spaces lack diversity. Going to museums and galleries, he noticed a lack of representation of people of color. Studying classical and traditional portraits and people, he asked why these pieces did not look like his friends. How can their stories be acknowledge? At the time, he did not know how to convey this observation. He used his talent to embody that conversation. Looking back, he is happy that he contributed to that change. Now more art and people of color are celebrated in great ways. Galleries and museums changed what they looked like and who is recognized. The portraits featured at the exhibition are a collision of street art, graffiti, and realism. The portraits illustrated Black natural beauty with positive messages such as “I love your hair” in the background. He created a piece for the community to engage and share. The audience participated in this creative experience by writing encouraging affirmations on Okamura’s portrait.
“I want kids to get involved, enjoy it, have fun, recognize people and see themselves in it. I hope it holds up to critical eyes as well.” -Timothy Okamura
Nicole Washington created lively multidimensional portraits that pack powerful symbols. She captured strong and confident women into goddesses. Washington intertwines her story with the models through paintbrushes. She loves ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. In Egyptian hieroglyphics, there is a subject and the story is around the subject through symbols or words. Although she does not always know the translations, she creates her own story. This inspired Washington to recreate a form of her own narrative and symbols with influential messages of feminine strength, beauty, and spirituality. The secret languages on her canvas are interpretations of communication with ancestors, healing, and self-love. She wants the audience to insert themselves into the art and encourage the flow of imagination.
With a paintbrush and courage, Jessica Spence confronts how beauty inhabits scrutiny based on skin tone and texture of hair. Her art brings a new narrative against societal bullying of colorism and hair politics. The paintbrush brings forth a visual dialogue that expresses ambiguous standards of beauty. She hopes to bring cultural pride and the ability to celebrate who you are head to toe. Each realistic portrait illustrates women and girls doing their hair. It is a reflection of women’s hair routines and daily life while showing love for their hair. It brightly encourages young girls and women to celebrate themselves through a colorful palette.
“I did not want women to be victims of societal norms of beauty. I wanted to show beauty in a positive light”. -Jessica Spence
1:Â Respect & Love Rise Above, painting
2:Â The Choice is Yours, photo, acrylic, gouache, oil stick on canvas
3: Weekend at Auntie’s, acrylic on canvas
