The Host Committee
The Winston-Salem Portrait Project has been a true collaboration from the very beginning. From designing the method of community engagement, programming the workshops and designing the physical artworks. Throughout the process, the lead artists Kisha Bari and Jasmin Chang have worked closely with a local team (Magalie Yacinthe, Aaron Gibbons and Kendra Bragg Harding), as well as community members and student mediamakers.
In January 2019, they gathered this host committee of about 30 people. As ambassadors for their community, Kisha and Jasmin charged them to think intentionally and diversely about people who represent this city. They asked them to think about the many communities here, about those who are not usually in the spotlight, and of people whose perspectives expand the story of Winston-Salem.
Photos by Aliyah Bryant
Community Outreach
Photos by Aliyah Bryant and Gabrielle Joseph
The host committee spent five months doing outreach to find neighbors and collect nominations. They went to community meetings, local libraries, cafes and all places where people gather to listen to stories. The host committee also selected the locations of the 8 permanent murals that are installed in each ward.
After an arduous selection process, the host committee selected 60 community members, who represent an intersectional representation of the city.
The Workshops
In June 2019, these community members came together to participate in a workshop that facilitated connection and bridge building. They were paired with someone new and learned how to photograph a meaningful portrait of their partner. They did this by having deep conversations to help draw out their partner’s personalities in the portrait studio.
The workshop concluded with Kisha photographing a portrait of each set of partners to show a new connection made.
All these portraits — the ones the participants made of one another, and the ones that Kisha made of each set of partners — are on display for all to see.
Photos by Christian Green and Bryce Johnson
The Public Artworks
There are three components to the project: a downtown sculpture in Winston Square Park, eight murals (one in each city ward), and a pop-up participant exhibition that will be on display through the summer.
In designing the artworks, Kisha and Jasmin wanted the physical pieces to reflect the purpose and mission of the project — building bridges and reflecting the community. The stainless steel building blocks include portraits of the partners along with their remarkable stories engraved. Mirrored steel panels are interspersed throughout to reflect the surrounding environment and you, the viewer, as you are also a part of the fabric of this city.
You are invited to meet some of your neighbors, and to see yourself reflected.
We hope this sculpture is a catalyst and inspiration for everyone to continue building the diversity and intersectionality of Winston-Salem.
Learn more about the process behind-the-scenes
The First Weekend of Citywide Community Portrait Workshops!
What an incredible two days of community connections we just had as we launched our first Winston-Salem Portrait Project Workshops!! This past weekend, half of the selected participants from all around the city came together at UNCSA and learned more about each other’s lives and communities. They were given the opportunity to form deeper and…
Portrait Participant Profile: Joe ‘Peanut Man’ Watson
“Everybody really knows me as ‘The Peanut Man’. You’ll say ‘Hey, do you know Joe Watson who does media?’ and they’ll say ‘Who?’ but if you say ‘The Peanut Man’, they’ll say ‘Yeah!’,” says W-S Portrait Participant, Joe Watson. A Winston-Salem native and father of two, Joe has made a living serving his community by…
Southwest Ward Nomination Mixer
Our Host Committees have been out in their communities working hard to gather nominees for our final week! The Southwest Ward hosted a mixer last week at Ember Audio to meet their neighbors and collect stories for us! Thank you to all of our Host Committee Members for all your hard work and also to…
Portrait Nominee: Susan Wilson
Donna Susan Wilson represents the La Deara Crest community in the Northeast Ward of Winston-Salem. She has been with her husband for 42 years, and they have three children, eight grandchildren, and a host of godchildren. Susan just retired a year ago, and felt that God laid it on their hearts to serve their community…
Our Host Committee Kicks Off!!
WOW!! We did it! After a few months of building the Portrait Project Host Committee, we were thrilled to finally get all 30 members together for a kickoff meeting on Tuesday, January 15th. The committee will be taking the reigns of community outreach, and it is an incredible group of movers and shakers across Winston-Salem…
Meet our Host Committee
WOW!!! What an incredible Host Committee Kick-Off meeting!! A HUGE THANK YOU to all of our volunteers for believing in this community engagement / public art project and giving us your time and knowledge about your city. We were absolutely thrilled to get you all in a room together to build these new relationships. Cant…
Who represents your community in Winston-Salem?
We are seeking people with stories that are quintessentially ‘Winston-Salem’. Whether it be someone who worked in the Hanes factory for decades or a budding athlete, artist or scholar that other young people can look up to. We’re looking for stories from minority communities that showcase the cultural diversity of the city. We’re looking for…
East Winston, SECCA & Diggs Gallery
We’ve been loving trekking all around #WinstonSalem meeting community movers and shakers from so many backgrounds! Getting to know you Winston-Salem! If you’d like to tell us about your neighborhood & community, please get in touch at info@wsportraitproject.com #wsportraitproject #publicart #community
Meeting Winston-Salem movers & shakers
Such a huge and wonderful day yesterday meeting with Leadership Winston-Salem, the #WinstonSalem Arts Commission, Mona King & Kanika Brown to talk about how to get to know Winston-Salem better and find those key community leaders that can help us create artwork that truly represents the faces of the city. We’re still looking for Host…
Department of City Planning
Jasmin & I got to nerd out on maps at the Winston-Salem Dept of City Planning also! Thank you Kelly Bennett for hooking us up with our own big map of Winston-Salem!! @cityofwinstonsalem #winstonsalem #northcarolina #mapnerd #cityplanning
We’re in Winston-Salem!
We’re in Winston-Salem!! For our first day getting to know the W-S community, we decided to head to City Hall and chat with some of your council members to tell us about your Wards! Council Members Jeff McIntosh of the Nth East and James Taylor of the Sth East give us a birdseye view of…
