SoLA Contemporary

We are proud to introduce, At the Intersection, the inaugural Art For The Climb exhibition that looks both ways at freedom, blackness, the self, and community through the work of 5 local artists. Coined by UCLA Law Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, intersectionality explains how many of our identities and social justice problems overlap: race, gender, sexuality, class, and politics can’t be separated. This group of diverse Black artists present layered identities through abstraction and portraiture that exchange the gaze with the South Central, Inglewood, and Eagle Rock communities. At a bustling juncture, At the Intersection, help viewers cross painting and photography that reflect our people, PRIDE, power, and passion. 

Across three neighborhoods, D.Channsin Berry, Janaya Holmes, Jamaal Hasef, Marie Rose José, and Yuzly Mathurin craft portraits of the Black community that tap into the sonic, stylistic, interpersonal, and intellectual contributions of the African diaspora. At Hilltop Slauson, Berry’s abstract paintings muse on Miles Davis, the LA Riots, and African Americans’ Great Migration from the South to major cities such as Los Angeles. While Hasef Jamal’s work in oil pastel honors the neighborhood in richly textured compositions that pay close attention to personal style, “2 Black Women in Leimert Park” is among portraits of the artist’s friends. At Hilltop Eagle Rock, Janaya Holmes centers Generation Z in her paintings of musicians SZA and Tanerelle, among others. At the same time, Marie José engages the interpersonal, highlighting self-care and Black mental health in a pair of candy-toned figurative paintings. The above artists join Yuzly Mathurin at Hilltop Inglewood, where this Haitian muralist and portrait painter displays her photography for the first time in a series captured at AfroPunk entitled

About Art For The Climb

Hilltop Coffee+ Kitchen is proud to reintroduce its partnership with SoLA Contemporary as its satellite location hub displaying works by LA artists. Art For The Climb formerly #ArtOnSlauson, was birthed through conversations between Anefertiti Bowman, Director & Curator of SoLA Contemporary and Tara King, Marketing Manager of Hilltop Coffee & Kitchen around their mutual love of the arts, their desire to support artistic expression, and passion to provide a safe space for visibility of cultural sustainability within the industry. 

About SoLA Contemporary

South LA (SoLA) Contemporary is a nonprofit, artist-run organization that serves as a cornerstone for cultural and artistic innovation in South Los Angeles. Our goal is to advocate for change by empowering people from diverse backgrounds to take risks in their creative endeavors and to explore the intersection of art, culture, society, and politics. Above all, SoLA Contemporary is a safe and receptive space for anyone seeking to experience the power of contemporary art.