Benjamin Hernandez, Contributing Photographer
This week the Trumbull Art Gallery is hosting an exhibition of New Haven artists.
The exhibition is the culmination of a collaboration between the University’s Belonging at Yale initiative and BlackBull, a nascent Black student affinity group for Trumbullians co-founded by Jenelle Burgess ’26 and Alexander O’Sullivan ’26. According to Burgess, the theme of the gallery exhibition is “bridging community.” The five artists — Faustin Adeniran, Jasmine Nikole, Kwadwo Adae, Moshopefoluwa Olagunju and Marquia Brantley — are all local to the Elm City and will receive an honorarium for showcasing their work.
“I really do hope that this gallery will inspire similar things at Trumbull or throughout the Yale community,” Burgess told the News. “Because I do think it is a really beautiful thing to be able to showcase not just the wealth of talent that exists in the Black community and other marginalized communities at Yale, but also that exists in the community that we all walk through every day.”
Burgess said the idea to form BlackBull emerged among friends at a study break her first year but only formalized last semester with the help of newly-appointed Trumbull Head of College Fahmeed Hyder and his wife, Associate Head Anita Sharif-Hyder.
She said that the gallery was inspired by a similar event held to commemorate Black History Month at Hopkins High School by Hyder’s daughter Laila. Hyder then approached Burgess and proposed hosting such an event at Trumbull, Burgess said.
“I imagined that there was a need and a desire for a community like this and we’ve definitely seen that that is a shared sentiment,” said Burgess.
She added that the exhibition also came together with the help of Vice President and Secretary for University Life Kimberly Goff Crews ’83 LAW ’86, as well as Associate Dean for the Arts Kate Kreir.
Goff-Crews told the News that she hopes the exhibition inspires students to embark on something similar.
“People think there’s this big distinction between Yale and New Haven, but this helps bridge that divide,” Goff-Crews said. “To have a student in particular create a platform to be the bridge is very inspiring and definitely needed.”
Nikole, one of the artists, told the News that it was a “huge honor” to exhibit her work alongside other New Haven artists at the University.
She added that she hopes her work fosters a sense of belonging in viewers and that similar programs continue to create a “mutual relationship” between Yale and New Haven.
“I grew up in New Haven, and I don’t think I’ve really been on campus and so I think programs like this could be a way to bridge that gap,” Nikole said. “There could be a mutual relationship where it’s not just Yale reaching back to the community but the community imparting their knowledge back into Yale and its community.”
The gallery is open from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. every day this week until Friday at Trumbull College.
