The “I Was Here” project showcased the historical impact of African American people during its art installation at the Old Fayette County Court House.
Opening to the public on Thursday, Feb. 20 the installation aims to convey African Americans’ role as “unacknowledged nation builders” through ancestral spirit portraits, according to the project’s website.
The portraits, displayed on tapestries, have narrative captions written on them that further emphasize the “I Was Here” project’s message.
One tapestry reads, “Thankful for the Ancestors that paved the way for us. I am standing on their shoulders today,” with another tapestry reading, “I am my Ancestors Faith turned flesh.”
The project collaborated with Operation Be You, Inc. (OBY) to create these narrative captions, according to Roberta Davis, the founder and president of OBY.
“Now, when you look at the portrait of the ancestral spirit, it has a voice,” Davis said.
OBY is a non-profit in Lexington that “focuses on the development and empowerment of all girls, with an emphasis on girls of color,” according to its website.
As part of the installation’s debut, two OBY members, Khenedi Brown and Ryleigh Williams, a junior advisor with the organization, recited original poetry reflecting ancestral impact.
“My narrative was sort of a window to the soul of Black history, and how it should impact the entire country, and how it feels through the eyes of a young woman like me,” Williams said.
The “I Was Here” project, having had several installations in Lexington, as well as one in Washington D.C. and New York City, was first thought up by Marjorie Guyon, who said the idea came to her in 2016.
“My studio looked out onto the old courthouse, and I spent 25 years looking out the windows of that building,” Guyon said. “I had a vision in November of 2016 of an African mother and child that moved like points of light from window to window, and that’s how the project began.”
Now an artist with the project, Guyon said she hoped attendees would gain “a sense of their own potential” through the artwork, and said the installation is meant to be an experience.
“It is a synthesis of the arts, humanities and history, and it is designed to help America understand our history,” Guyon said.
Barry Darnell Burton, the installation technician and writer with the project, also talked about the role the project can play in educating the community about the contributions of Black people throughout American history.
“Black history is America’s history,” Burton said. “We are nation builders, our history started way before the textbooks say we did. It’s a lot of stuff left out that we’re trying to bring to the forefront.”
Burton said the narrative of Black people in America has “written us in as a violent people.” He said he hoped the installation could help change this narrative, as well as unite members of the community.
“We’re not someone you should have to fear, grip your purse when you come close to them, worrying about if you’re at home . . . our true history is of building people up,” Burton said.
