Check Out the Forthcoming ‘UNBOUND’ Exhibit at the Museum of African Diaspora
This autumn, the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) is preparing to launch a comprehensive exhibition that encourages audiences to envision Blackness as a realm of endless potential. Named UNBOUND: Art, Blackness, and the Universe, it is a collective exhibition examining the “essential links between Blackness, scientific and spiritual cosmologies, and post-human concepts.” UNBOUND emphasizes Blackness as a formidable force situated at the crossroads of creativity and academia.
The exhibition will encompass the whole museum, covering three levels and immersing the audience in a range of media and conceptual interpretations of Blackness. It showcases aesthetic practices by employing paintings, collage, glass art, and installations, while aiming to honor and reflect the liberation that arises from the unknown.
Key Jo Lee, the head of curatorial affairs and public programs, coordinated UNBOUND. “This exhibition celebrates the expansive conceptual potential of Blackness, approaching Black existence with the same imaginative and intellectual openness we apply to metaphysical and cosmic contemplations,” Lee states. “In this way, it makes a groundbreaking assertion that Blackness is not peripheral, but fundamental to our understanding of being, time, and the universe itself.”
The ground floor of the museum focuses on the themes of creation, divinity, and mythology. It features images from the Infinite Essence collection by Mikael Owunna, which draws from Nigerian (Igbo) and Malian (Dogon) beliefs that perceive Blackness as an “originary source of life.” For this series, Owunna captured portraits using a camera that transmits only UV light. The subjects are adorned with UV paint and photographed in complete darkness, rendering them as majestic celestial figures.
Artworks on the second and third floors center around the concept of mapping Blackness, in both geological and astrophysical contexts. Alison Janae Hamilton’s work is highlighted in this section of the exhibition. One notable piece is BRILLIANT SKY (For Mary Ann Carroll), which honors the sole female member of the Florida Highwaymen, a self-taught collective of 26 Black artists who depicted the unblemished landscape using vibrant colors.
UNBOUND: Art, Blackness, and the Universe will be displayed at MoAD from October 1, 2025, until August 16, 2026. The timing of the exhibition aligns with MoAD’s 20th anniversary festivities and the second annual Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week, during which the entire Bay Area community acknowledges Black arts and culture.