A cultural organization diversifying the museum and arts preservation industry is celebrating its anniversary at BLDG 92 on Feb. 24. Museum Hue is turning two and the founders of the arts collective are hosting a fiesta alongside Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn’s Black Artstory Month series. For their first anniversary they focused on promoting the mission and culture, this year they are creating a safe space for their supporters in light of social issues and highlighting black pride, said one of the founders.
“With all the things happening in country for our second anniversary we decided to really have an opportunity to offer people a space of healing in community,” said Stephanie Cunningham, co-founder and creative director of Museum Hue.
“And we’re not just founded by two black women, but founded in the month of February which is also Black History Month and so it’s giving opportunity for us to celebrate blackness right now.”
Guests can participate in workshops, hands-on art and murals creation, discussions, and meditation at the gathering. In collaboration with this year’s fifth annual Black Artstory Month, which theme this year is “Healing and African methods and traditions,” Cunningham said she was excited for members of the community to take part in it.
“We partnered with them to highlight the theme of rituals of healing of the Diaspora and so we’re really excited about this partnership,” said Cunningham.
In response to the lack of diversity seen in museums, founders Cunningham and Monica O. Montgomery created Museum Hue to increase and promote the visibility of people of color in art and culture spaces. In just two years, their outreach has grown rapidly and globally recognized, according to Cunningham.
“Mostly what’s exciting for me is that we’ve been able to create a community of our own, whether it be online and real time in-person community as well — and not just locally but nationally and throughout the world,” she said.
“What we’re realizing is that our influence is spreading wide and despite conversations and conversations — most importantly I’m excited we’re celebrating ourselves.”
Cunningham said the event will be all-inclusive, but focused on priortizing the need to celebrate people of color.
“The focus is always on our community — we always want to send that message home,” she said. “Everyone can come but know that this space and the discussion are centered around our communities.”
