CHARLOTTE, N.C. — This month, there's a push to spotlight the work of local lesser-known Black artists in the Queen City. It's happening at two Charlotte restaurants hosting the "Charlotte Renaissance: An Urban Revival" to celebrate African-American history and culture.
"I just thought: What if local artists had the assistance of local businesses, and they would lend their walls for the artist to be able to use their space in order to sell their work?" Jacqueline Currie, the curator for the event, said.
Currie, a licensed clinical mental health counselor, noticed bare walls in various restaurants during the pandemic and came up with the idea from her client base.
"I was dealing in my private practice by accumulating more clients who are creatives," Currie told WCNC Charlotte. "And the creatives were depressed, they were anxious."
The Goodyear House in Charlotte's NoDa neighborhood and Golden Owl Tavern in University City started featuring the art on Feb. 1 and will continue through Feb. 28. The art -- ranging from acrylic and multimedia art to oil painting -- is all for sale.
Right now Golden Owl Tavern is featuring four different artists' work.
"It's something that you don't see in University City often," Golden Own Tavern general manager Farid Srouj said. "It's to showcase something that is, you know, creative as well as also brings a space alive."
Currie said she wants people who see the art to harken back to the 1960s when an explosion of Black creatives dominated the culture in Charlotte's Brooklyn Village neighborhood.
"We're just reviving the spirit of Black creativity by hanging artwork by Black artists," she explained.
Right now thousands of patrons are seeing the art every week before they side down for their dinner reservations. The hope is that the interest continues beyond this month.
"We would like this to be kind of a revolving door of just something new for people to see," Currie said with a smile.
Contact Fred Shropshire at fred@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.