Unite

Cleave Carney Gallery, College of DuPage, 2018

At the Cleve Carney Gallery, I presented Unite, an exhibition that examined value, equity, and cultural memory through material transformation. The show brought together my Kool-Aid–stained particle boards, etched and painted OSB panels, and the UNITE billboard installation. Each work reimagined the visual language of boarded-up buildings—symbols of protection, abandonment, and survival—and translated them into luminous fields of color and texture. The dyed wood, tinted with flavors like Cherry and Grape, nodded to AfriCOBRA’s “Cool-Ade” palette of the 1960s, linking popular culture, community aesthetics, and Black liberation.

The UNITE billboard stood as both painting and architecture—black, heavy, and reflective, with the word “Unite” etched in reverse on its verso. Viewers had to press close, bending around its edges to see the word, mirroring the ways Black artists and institutions must navigate systems of access and visibility. Through these works, I re-imagined everyday materials—those often overlooked or discarded—as carriers of history and power. The exhibition reflected my ongoing belief that art can hold space for both protection and protest, for memory and rebuilding.

Curated by Justin Witte

UNITE catalog, written by Lee Ann Norman.

"Faheem Majeed Has Made Magic in Glen Ellyn" Review by Lori Waxman,Chicago Tribune