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news & updates

what is BAF up to?

If you're ever wondering what Black Artist Forward is doing in the community, you've found the right spot. Learn more about our current work in the community, and upcoming events and projects here. 

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Our History




In the late fall of 2022 I (April Mata, President and Founder) got an email from Lee Gray inviting me to sit on the council for Fayetteville's chapter of the Black Wall Street Forward Initiative. I would have never thought that this email, which was just a networking opportunity for me at the time, would inspire the development of Black Artist Forward. Fast Forward to September of 2024, and we are a full-fledged 501c3. How did we get here and why?


The easy answer is it was needed. In March of 2023, after our first Black Artist Forum, you the artists cried out for more. As a black artist, I knew that we could do more and create the kind of impact I needed years ago. After the event, Shakeyla Ingram, Vice President and I began building a board and our foundation. Before we knew it, we had a board of 10 members: April Mata, Shakela Ingram, Al Bowman, Denniz Cargile, Angela Williams, Tiya Caniel, Marcus Doss, Duane Jones, Andrew Brooks, and SWT. In May we had our first exhibit in Kress Space entitled Dawn. In June we launched Kissed by the Sun, and at the same time, we began to roll out our professional development courses. By the end of 2023, we gave away over $1,000, were in 3 major local news publications, and in multiple festivals including Juneteenth, 4th of July, International Folk Festival, Something in the Jungle, Marcus Doss's Exotic Hair Odyssey, Night Circus, and the RnB Festival. Heading into 2024 we were the cover story of FayNC Magazine, booked to speak at our first conference: Artist Thrive Summit, partnered with the amazing Brandon Johnson at Segra Stadium, and launched our first Black Art Crawl. All the while, still putting art in all the festivals.


We look forward to this 2024-25 fiscal year, our first year as a non-profit, and all of the changes that are to come. We welcome you to join us and help us grow as we do. Thank you to all who came before to pave the way, thank you to all who have helped along the way, and thank you to those who are on their way to help in the future. Let's do this!




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