Curated by Sydney G. James

September 11 through October 16, 2026
Reception: Friday, September 11, 5-8PM
 

Wayne State University Art Galleries and the James Pearson Duffy Department of Art, Art History, and Design is pleased to present Crossroads: Intersections of Black Family Culture at the Art Department Gallery from September 11 through October 16, 2026. An opening reception will be held on Friday, September 11, 5-8PM.

Crossroads: Intersections of Black Family Culture is an interdisciplinary traveling group exhibition that explores the cultural significance of Black family dynamics in the Americas, which evolved from centuries of resilience against slavery, colonialism, and systemic oppression.

In response to forced separations and disrupted biological ties, Black communities developed unique family structures centered on communal relationships, extended networks, and collective responsibility. These adaptations include fictive kinship, where non-biological relationships hold familial status, exaggerated kinship and kinship care, where community members share child-rearing responsibilities beyond traditional nuclear family models. 

This exhibition in its current form is from a Great Migration Detroit community lens. Originally debuted at the Muskegon Museum of Art, December 2025, the show has evolved and expanded featuring additional artists with familial and community ties. Black family culture's emphasis on mutual support, interconnectedness, and shared responsibility serves as both a survival strategy and a form of resistance against systemic devaluation. Crossroads: Intersections of Black Family Culture examines the cultural framework that remains foundational to Black identity and celebrates community strength while preserving a rich cultural legacy deeply rooted in the African diaspora.
 

The exhibition includes work by the following artists: Juanita Anderson, Lisa S. Anderson, Habacuc Bessiake, Judy Bowman, Camille Ann Brewer, Cydney Camp, Halima Afi Cassells, Elonte Davis, Danielle Eliska, Asukile Gardner, Saffell Gardner, Sydney G. James, Gregory Johnson, Richard Kinney, Lamar Landers, Richard Lewis, Hubert Massey, Justin Milhouse, Sabrina Nelson, Jonni Paige, Dominic Porter, Senghor Reid, Shirley Woodson-Reid, Ashlee Royster, Kavonna Smith, Lina Stephens, Marian Stephens, Ashley Stevenson, Sterling Toles, and Hilda Vest.