Collection: NIAD Annex Exhibition // "Raven Harper: Dear Mama"

Gallery Opening Saturday June 11

On view through June 24

Dear Mama is an exhibition organized by Raven Harper. Using the title of a song by poet and rapper Tupac Shakur, the show is a tribute to the legacy of the late artist and his family. In a conversation about her inspiration for the show, Raven had the following to share:

“I’ve had this show in mind for many years. I’ve been listening to Tupac’s music since I was in my twenties. He was a good person with a good heart. His mother was a role model for him, and part of the Black Panther Party. He was born while she was in prison. He overcame a lot in life, and never let anyone get him down. I feel a lot of parallels of survival between us. I feel like when he died, a part of me died with him. He was a good soul.” 

Raven reflected on the poem “And 2morrow,” which is included in Tupac’s book of poetry titled The Rose That Grew From Concrete, and ties into some of the themes of the “American” experience in the adjacent exhibition Beyond the Yankee Doodle, organized by Antonia Dapena-Tretter in the NIAD gallery:

“The poem has a lot of power and knowledge. It applies to so many people, and carries on their stories. It’s about conquering obstacles and moving forward.”