Souls Grown Deep to Curate 2025 Armory Show’s Platform Section

Souls Grown Deep will curate My Art is the Evidence of My Freedom, a display of works by celebrated Black artists of the American South in The Armory Show’s 2025 Platform section presented at the Javits Center in Manhattan from September 5–7 (VIP Preview September 4). Organized by Souls Grown Deep (SGD) Chief Curator Raina Lampkins-Fielder, this marks the first time a nonprofit organization has been selected to curate Platform at the center of the fair.

Amplifying SGD’s mission to advance recognition and visibility of the work of Black Southern artists, the Platform section will feature selections from the organization’s extensive collection, including paintings, assemblages, and sculptures by Thornton Dial, Mary T. Smith, Joe Minter, and Lonnie Holley, as well as textile works by Gee’s Bend quilters Mary Lee Bendolph and Essie Bendolph Pettway, among others. SGD’s first showing at an art fair, Platform provides a snapshot of SGD’s collection, celebrating the work of Black artists who lived in—and whose artistic practices were informed by—the American South.

The title, My Art is the Evidence of My Freedom, comes from a statement made by the late American master Thornton Dial, discussing his practice working within challenging social and economic environments as a Black man in the American South. This notion of self-directed artistic and personal liberation serves as a lens through which to view the work of the artists in this display, where Black artists’ reclamation of their narratives is expressed conceptually, materially, and formally.

“The opportunity to feature the incredible artists in Souls Grown Deep’s collection at The Armory Show brings SGD’s mission to a vital forum within the art world, amplifying the works of Black Southern artists,” said Lampkins-Fielder. “With this display centered on personal and collective liberation, we aim to create a significant opportunity for curators, collectors, artists, and the public to engage with these monumental works by important American artists who have often been overlooked in these types of events.”

Souls Grown Deep’s curation of The Armory Show’s Platform section brings critical visibility to the organization’s advocacy for Black artists from the American South. SGD’s Collection Transfer program has facilitated the placement of over 500 works by 110 artists into the collections of more than 40 museums and artist institutions around the world, creating new opportunities for scholarship and public access. These acquisitions include works by Dial and Smith as well as those of the Gee’s Bend quilters, broadening awareness of these artists’ legacies and establishing their deserved place in museums and important collections. Alongside art world recognition, SGD advances economic empowerment for artists and racial and social justice in their communities. SGD’s advocacy spans intellectual property rights, resale royalties, values-aligned investing, and sustainable cultural tourism, with a focus on transformative community development efforts in Gee’s Bend. Select works on display at The Armory Show will be available for acquisition, with revenue supporting SGD’s programs and impact initiatives, and a resale royalty award directly benefiting living artists.

“As the first nonprofit organization to curate the Platform section at the heart of The Armory Show, we welcome this opportunity to uplift our mission of not only celebrating these venerable artists, but advancing material change both within the art world and beyond,” said Dr. Maxwell L. Anderson, President of Souls Grown Deep. “In the face of growing threats to Black artists and the institutions that steward their work, SGD is proud to explicitly uphold racial and social justice advocacy at the core of our organization.”