Temple University Rome is excited to host its sixth annual Black History Month throughout February 2025. This year's theme is Black Resilience.
The Gallery of Art is pleased to present the exhibition Dreams from My Father, featuring the work of artist Kimmah Dennis as the inaugural event for our celebration of Black History Month. Arranged over the month of February in the United States and in Canada, and in October in Great Britain, BHM honors the contribution of the African diaspora to the world’s creative culture, from music and dance, fashion and design, language and literature. Our theme for this year’s program looks to showcase, through a rich schedule of events, a possible understanding of what Black Resilience looks like for young black creators within the community in Rome.
The program of events will be followed by a Documentary Screening and a Roundtable Discussion, allowing for new insight and dialogue around the theme of Black Resilience.
Timeline of Events
February 4 : Gallery of Art opening, 6-8 PM (TUR Gallery of Art)
Kimmah Dennis
"Dreams from My Father"
On display through Feb. 27
The Gallery of Art will open with Kimmah Dennis' exhibition on on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, from 6-8 p.m., with "Dreams from My Father". Kimmah Dennis is a Liberian-Ivorian painter and photographer who explores the issue of the trauma of displacement through traditional, experimental, and conceptual materials. The show will run through Thursday, February 27, 2025.
Migration is a journey of hope, resilience, and transformation. In her solo exhibition, Dreams from My Father, interdisciplinary artist Kimmah Dennis presents a compelling exploration of migration, belonging, and identity. Drawing from her fellowship at the American Academy in Rome, Dennis merges painting, drawing, collage, photography, and installation to craft narratives that transcend geographical and cultural boundaries.
The exhibition intertwines personal and collective stories of displacement, adapting identity, and inherited dreams. The title is inspired by Barack Obama’s Dreams from My Father and by her own experiences of loss and legacy, Dennis reflects on her father’s sacrifices and the enduring aspirations passed down through generations.
The work is shaped by interviews with migrants in Rome, conducted in locations such as Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, local markets, and other gathering spaces where diverse communities connect. These stories resonate with universal struggles for security, opportunity, and a sense of home.
All the paintings were created during Dennis’s time as the Terra Foundation Affiliated Visual Artist Rome Prize winner at the American Academy in Rome. She extends a heartfelt thank you to the Academy for gifting her the time and space to develop this body of work. Many of the paintings in the first room feature portraits of friends and the community she built during her residency at the American Academy.
These interconnected dialogues reflect the essence of Dreams from My Father, exploring the infinite through a sense of unity within diversity. Much like the migratory experience, the works share common ideas while differing in execution, unified by medium yet distinguished by technique. Bold compositions, shaped by innovative experimental methods, capture profound aspects of human experience—fragmentation and reconstruction, collective history and memory, cultural hybridity, and evolving concepts of beauty. The collage process, with its diverse materials, becomes a metaphor for the many layers that come together to form complex and multifaceted identities. This exhibition stands as a tribute to the dreams of those who came before, the sacrifices they made, and the enduring legacy of their aspirations for future generations.
The exhibition unfolds across three interconnected spaces, each offering a unique perspective on Dennis’s creative process and thematic inquiries.
February 10 – Documentary Screening, 6-8 PM (TUR Cinema Room)
Title: The Sea Has Betrayed Me
Type: Documentary Podcast
Original Language: Italian
Subtitles: English
Duration: 46 minutes
Produced by: Sensi Holistic Creative Agency
Producer: Alina Vasieikina
Director: Daniele Stocchi
Cinematographer: Daniele Comelli
Interviewer: Giulio Villaggio
Protagonist: Sheikh Tijan Jallow
Synopsis: The Sea Has Betrayed Me takes viewers on an intimate and deeply moving journey through the life of Sheikh Tijan Jallow, a 25-year-old Gambian refugee, model, and aspiring actor. Born in West Africa, Sheikh grew up in a family of four siblings, dreaming of a brighter future beyond the borders of his homeland. The film chronicles Sheikh’s extraordinary story through a podcast-like one shot documentary, where he shares his courageous and at times heartbreaking journey from Gambia to Italy. At the age of 14 he left his hometown with his cousin for Senegal in pursuit of his dream to become a professional footballer. Soon after, a life-changing decision led him to embark on a perilous eight-month journey to Italy—a journey fraught with challenges, resilience, and hope. Through candid and captivating storytelling, The Sea Has Betrayed Me delves into themes of migration, identity, and the resilience of the human spirit. Sheikh’s narrative is a poignant reminder of the struggles and dreams shared by millions seeking safety, opportunity, and belonging in unfamiliar lands.
The screening will be followed by a brief talk with Sheikh.
February 17: Roundtable Discussion, 6-8 PM (TUR Gallery of Art)
Students are invited to attend a round table discussion on Black Resilience with speakers such as: Kimmah Dennis, Sheikh Tijan Jallow, Gordon Abeiku Mensah (member of the Berkeley Center on Antidiscrimination and Comparative Equality Law), Denise Kongo and Kwanza Musi Dos Santos (representatives from the non-profit association QuestaeRoma.org).
