Image: D.L. Warfield, The United States of We Built This Sh*t for Free
As America marks its 250th anniversary, NBAF’s 2026 season, I, Too, Sing!, offers a resonant exploration of the role Black creativity has played in defining and redefining the American story. Rooted in Langston Hughes’s declaration, “I, too, sing America,” the suite asserts that Black art is not an addendum to the national narrative; it is one of its primary authors. Through live and digital programming over the course of the year, we remind the nation that America’s song is not complete without our verse.
February 28, 2026 | 8:00 PM
NBAF Digital
Join NBAF as we gather visionary artists and thinkers Carrie Mae Weems, Marc Bamuthi Joseph, & Dr. Daniel Black in a discussion moderated by Errin Haines to explore a defining question for this moment: Who gets to shape the story of this nation? This conversation examines America as an unfinished composition, a story continuously reframed by creativity, cultural memory, and imagination. Through a dynamic dialogue at the intersection of art, history, and identity, the panel considers how Black voices have expanded, challenged, and co-authored the American narrative, and what it means to claim authorship as the nation enters its next chapter.
Who Gets To Sing America is supported by Georgia Humanities, in partnership with the Georgia Department of Economic Development, through funding from the Georgia General Assembly. NBAF’s Creatively Speaking conversation series focuses on art, culture and ideas.
March 20, 2026 | 7:30 PM & 21, 2026 | 2:00 PM & 7:30 PM
Mary Schmidt Campbell Center for Innovation & the Arts, Spelman College
Tickets: $10.00
Echoes of the Storm situates one of the nation’s most defining recent events within the continuum of remembrance and resilience. Developed by Junebug Productions and The Apollo Theater, this theatrical commemoration marks the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, a catastrophe that exposed the deep fractures of race, class, and policy in America while revealing the boundless strength of the Black South.
Eight playwrights - four based in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast states, and four Louisiana-born writers now based in New York - craft a mosaic of ten-minute plays reflecting on the storm’s enduring impact. Through intimate storytelling, dramatized memory, and documentary-style narrative, these works explore themes of loss, migration, home, and rebirth, tracing how the storm continues to shape identity and imagination two decades later. The playwrights: Kim Sykes, Jackie Alexander, Brian Egland, Sha’Condria “Icon” Sibley, Kaaron Briscoe, Stephanie McKee-Anderson, Nick Slie, Lori Elizabeth Parquet.
Echoes of the Storm is presented in collaboration with the Spelman College Mary Schmidt Campbell Center for Innovation & the Arts. Support for the joint commission and development of Echoes of the Storm was provided by The Apollo Theater and Junebug Productions. Directed by Aku Kadogo.
Image: Elizabeth Catlett, Blues (1983)
Color lithograph on cream wove paper. 29 1/4 x 19 inches; full margins.
FEBRUARY 11, 2026 - APRIL 30, 2026
Bloomingdale’s Art Gallery | Lenox Square
NBAF is excited to partner with Bloomingdale’s and Atlanta Fashion Week to celebrate Black artistic excellence with an art exhibition of works from the National Black Arts Festival Fine Art Print Collection. NBAF commissioned these artists to create original works between 1988 and 2007, supporting Black artists while expanding the visibility, preservation, and appreciation of Black visual culture. Many of the prints in the collection were printed and published by the Brandywine Workshop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the Experimental Printmaking Institute in Lafayette, Pennsylvania.
Together, these works reflect NBAF’s longstanding commitment to shaping culture, advancing artistic excellence, deepening cultural understanding through the visual arts and stewarding the stories that shape our shared cultural future.
NBAF will make select works available to collectors interested in acquiring print works by these legacy artists. For purchasing inquiries email ahicks@nbaf.org.
The Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge continues with the Thriving Together Atlanta Mobile Art Experience, a roving, immersive platform for public art, healing, and education. Designed to meet people where they are, the Mobile Art Bus serves as both a literal and symbolic vehicle for wellness, storytelling, and cultural expression. At each stop, the bus hosts a curated salon experience which includes a performance, education and healing arts. All delivered within or around the mobile bus environment. Join Us! The Mobile Art Experience is part of the Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge which is in partnership with The City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs and Out of Hand Theater. The Mobile Art Experience has been designed and curated by NEXT Atlanta.
Stop #4
ONE Contemporary Gallery | 395 Edgewood Ave, Atlanta, GA 30312
Performances by Kenny Banks (jazz pianist), Jon Goode (poet/author/host of The Moth), Malaika Floyd (sound bowl practitioner), Bria Anai (vocalist) and KHILA (choreographer, dancer). Exhibition portraits by Iyahdae Rose.
Presented in partnership with MARTA
Thriving Together Atlanta is a public art project dedicated to addressing inequality in healthcare through free events and activities. A collaboration between the City of Atlanta – Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, the National Black Arts Festival, and Out of Hand Theater. The project serves as a model of how cross-sector partnerships can address the multifaceted issues affecting communities. The groundbreaking project was awarded a $1 million grant through the Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge which brings together cities and their leaders, residents, and artists to develop temporary public art projects that address important civic issues in their communities.
To date NABF has presented the Thriving Together Atlanta Community Arts and Wellness Festival and produced two mural projects. Artist C. Flux Sing’s mural Old 4th, Forward to Victory uplifts the legacy and perseverance of Old Fourth Ward while Chloe Alexander’s The Light We Carry celebrates resilience and collective care in the West End. The final project, a mobile bus experience, launched in January 2026. The Mobile Bus Experience is produced in partnership with NEXT Atlanta and MARTA.
Visit the Thriving Together Atlanta website to stay up to date on upcoming events.
Additional funding has been contributed by Cousins Foundations, Gucci Changemakers, and South Arts. Support from the Black Leadership AIDS Crisis Coalition powered by AHF. Community partners include the Atlanta Beltline, Darwin Hotel, MARTA, NEXT Atlanta, Hammonds House Museum and Historic Mount Sinai Baptist Church.
