As Arewà Basit walked up to view her portrait for the first time at the Whitney Museum of American Art, she could barely hold back the tears. A crowd gathered around her and watched with pride as Basit took in the moment. Basit, a multidisciplinary artist, is one of many figures featured in the new exhibition Amy Sherald: American Sublime. For Basit, her inclusion is about ensuring marginalized communities are visible within history.
“This moment means that there is no possibility that my existence as a trans Black person is going to be erased from this institution,” she said. “It will always remain a part of history and this moment with Amy and her artistry celebrating Blackness means everything to me.”
Wall text at the exhibition notes that Sherald’s portrait of Basit titled Trans Forming Liberty is a direct response, “to the increasing threats, violence, and legislation against gay, transgender, and gender-nonconforming people across the United States.” Basit — who learned of the opportunity to model for Sherald via her representatives at, We Speak Model Management — mimics the Statue of Liberty’s iconic pose but as a proud trans individual, thereby representing the ideal that American freedom should truly be for all people.
Basit wasn’t the only one who was emotional during the opening reception for the show on Wednesday, April 2. Sherald, the artist who skyrocketed to fame in 2018 after painting the portrait of former First Lady Michelle Obama, was visibly ecstatic as she held court, greeting numerous enthusiastic supporters. “Today is one of the best days of my life,” she said. “I am having so much fun. I always wanted to have a show at The Whitney. It’s my dream show but I also think it’s happening at one of the more important times in history because of all the erasure that’s happening. This work stands in response to that and in resistance to that.”
Similar sentiments at Bronx Museum
Days later on Monday, April 7, similar sentiments of art’s role in today’s political climate were expressed at The Bronx Museum 2025 Gala & Art Auction. Artist Ebony G. Patterson, the recipient of The Bronx Museum’s Visionary Award delivered remarks that encouraged those in attendance to feel empowered and motivated to use art to imagine a better world for future generations.
“We are more powerful than we may feel, and we must remember why each of us is gathered here: It is because we believe in the importance of artists and institutions that support them,” she said. “We believe that institutions of the imagination make it possible for us to carve new futures. The life we shape in the present is never for us, it is for those who are to come. This is our charge.”
Others honored
Other honorees at the gala which was held at Tribeca Rooftop, included pioneering graffiti artist, FUTURA 2000 (Trailblazer Award) and Abbott Stillman (The Bronx Creative Vanguard Award). FUTURA 2000 whose retrospective, BREAKING OUT, at The Bronx Museum of the Arts recently closed, reflected on his iconic 1980 piece, Break. The image of a NYC subway car painted in abstract graffiti with no lettering — considered a first for this style within the graffiti art movement — was shot by legendary photographer Martha Cooper. “The train that I painted 45 years ago, that silver car, helped to get the ball rolling for my whole story,” he said. “And if Martha [Cooper] doesn’t document that train, there’s no subsequent discussion. No one calls me an abstractionist, I would have never heard of Kandinsky or anyone.”
At the after party, recording artist Amber Mark delivered an intimate and captivating set of R&B, soul, pop, house, and hip-hop influences. Backstage she shared her excitement to go on tour with pop star Sabrina Carpenter and plans for new music, which you can read all about here.
As guests mingled during the rest of the evening there was an air of beauty and strength–similar to the one felt days earlier at The Whitney–that made it feel like with art all things are possible.
The column, On the “A” w/Souleo, covers the arts, culture, entertainment, party, and philanthropy scene in Harlem and beyond and is written by Souleo.
