The WCDC is working with Casey Droege Cultural Productions to transform the workshop space in our newly renovated headquarters located in the historic Lohr Building into a gallery-level display space for local, Wilkinsburg artists. The Art All Over program was launched in 2020 A partnership with the Sleeping Octopus Artist Initiative (SOAI). The initiative will celebrate and promote the many accomplished artists who live in the Wilkinsburg area.
In order to respect social distancing, the WCDC is embracing technology and social media to allow the public to enjoy local art in new ways. From the comfort of your home you can experience the exhibits through photos and a virtual artist talks and tours online. You can also visit the show in person with the artist.
Current Artist
Ashanté Josey
works on display August 27th – October 15th, 2022
In-person Gallery Hours:
Saturdays 12:00pm to 5:00pm
at the Lohr Gallery
725 Wood Street, Wilkinsburg PA 15221
Opening Reception
Saturday, August 27th, 5-8PM
Free Community Workshop
with Ashanté Josey & Naomi Chambers
Saturday, September 17th, 12PM
Join us for an exhibit by Ashanté Josey, open every Saturday from 12pm – 5pm at the Lohr Gallery (725 Wood St. Wilkinsburg) from August 27th to October 15th. An opening reception will take place on Saturday, August 27th, 5-8PM. The community is welcome to attend a free workshop on Saturday, September 17th, 12PM.
Ashanté Josey: Free Mind, A Collection of Portraits
Free mind – creating open space, freeing yourself from your own mind.
If we allow it, our mind can be our biggest enemy. Freeing your mind is liberation from the learnings, beliefs, values, opinions, prejudices, judgements, world views, standards, and doubts that we harbor in our minds. Battles that we face are fought in the mind. Happiness and suffering are experienced in the mind. When we recondition our minds, we open ourselves up to freedom and shape our lives in the way that they were intended to be.
These Portraits of Black Women are symbolic to liberation. Liberation is equivalent to connecting to your higher self. Hair is used metaphorically as a way to embrace who you are. Historically, black hair in America has been seen as invaluable, but black hair is necessary, especially when it comes to liberation. In the ’50s and ’60s, black hair styles became a part of major black liberation movements. Our hair is used as a form of expression and art, our hair is symbolic to social standards, and our tight coils hold on to our history and emotions that we carry.
Ashanté is channeling freedom through this collection, which requires removing blockages in mind. When you free your mind, you open up your crown chakra blockages. Hair protects our crown chakra. The crown chakra is the seventh and the last chakra that controls the brain and the nervous system. Our crown chakra is located above the crown of our head, pointing upward. It is the individual’s center of spirit enlightenment, wisdom, and universal consciousness. Our crown connects us to our higher self and the divine.
Power is stored in our crowns. When you see a black woman embracing her natural hair just know that there is something magical brewing on the inside. It is a state of mind that permits us to be as genuine and true to ourselves as we possibly can, it’s called freedom.
Past Artists & Shows
Works by Rell – Displayed April 23rd, 2022 – June 11th, 2022
Works by W. Randy Rice – Displayed February 12th, 2022 – April 2nd, 2022
All Unsaved Changes Will Be Lost by Centa Schumacher – Displayed November 6th, 2021 – January 22nd, 2022
Works by Kelly Malone – Displayed August 28th – October 16th, 2021
A Scrappy Quilt Show by Ada S. Cyrus – Displayed May 1st – June 26th, 2021
Travelogue by Tom Norulak – Displayed November 14th, 2020 – March 13th, 2021
Daybreak by Zoë Welsh – Displayed August 15th – November 7th, 2020
Creations by John Burt Sanders. Displayed June 30th – August 8th, 2020. Read Sanders’ full feature on the WCDC’s blog HERE.