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Black artists reimagine the USA flag in a stunning new exhibition challenging the nation’s 250th anniversary narrative. Pigment International’s “Glory! Glory!” opened Friday night in Chicago with bold pieces questioning what the flag represents. The show runs through March 20, 2026 at Zhou B Art Center, forcing viewers to reckon with America’s complicated history of freedom and oppression.
🔥 Quick Facts
- Exhibition Title: Glory! Glory!, featuring reimagined US flag depictions by Black artists
- Location: Zhou B Art Center, Bridgeport, Chicago, runs Monday-Friday 11am-5pm
- Key Works: Robert Lewis Clark’s “44” with Barack Obama imagery, Nnaemeka Ekwelum’s “American’t” with dog tags of Black victims
- Curatorial Vision: Pigment International’s year-long initiative “America 250, We ARE the people” centering Black perspectives
Challenging the American Symbol with Cotton and Protest
The “Glory! Glory!” exhibition disrupts comfortable patriotism by forcing viewers to confront the flag’s complex legacy. Some works intentionally remove stars or hang flags upside down, directly questioning what freedom truly means. Candace Hunter, a Kenwood artist, constructed an entire flag from African mud cloth and fashion designer Brenda Winstead’s Damali wear, layering symbols of enslaved labor with contributions of African Americans. Her piece emphasizes that nothing historically American could exist without Black hands and history.
Another striking work, “American’t” by Nnaemeka Ekwelum, is woven with plastic lacing and adorned with military dog tags bearing the names of Black children killed by police. Ekwelum, 35, explains his artistic philosophy: “Something is off about this image,” he says of the flag. “And I think that’s how we should feel when we look at the flag.”
USA flag reimagined by Black artists in ‘Glory! Glory!’ exhibition challenging 250th anniversary
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Obama’s Legacy and Whitewashed History Collide
Robert Lewis Clark’s centerpiece artwork “44” stands as a monumental 11-by-8-foot mixed-media wall piece featuring Barack Obama on the American flag backdrop. The Hyde Park native created this work over a decade ago while Obama was still president, combining 44 colorful wooden stars and red-white stripes painted over newspapers announcing Obama’s historic 2008 victory. Clark has since donated a print to the Obama Presidential Center.
But the artwork gains new urgency under the current political moment. Clark’s visible newspaper text bleeding through white paint carries profound symbolism: “Our Black history is trying to be whitewashed, but it ain’t going nowhere,” Clark said. “The red represents the blood that our ancestors shed putting this country together.” This reflection reveals how these artistic interventions demand reckoning with historical trauma painted over but never truly erased.
Exhibition Details and Artist Perspectives
| Detail | Information |
| Exhibition Name | Glory! Glory! |
| Host Organization | Pigment International (Black-owned arts nonprofit) |
| Location | Zhou B Art Center, 1029 W. 35th St., Bridgeport, Chicago |
| Hours | Monday-Friday 11am-5pm through March 20, 2026 |
Paul Branton’s mixed-media piece “Change Under Georgian Sky” features former Georgia Representative Stacey Abrams, who expanded voting rights and helped flip Georgia blue in 2020. The portrait combines American flag imagery with a Confederate flag, illustrating the perpetual struggle for justice. Branton, 52, of Beverly describes the painful duality: “Being Black in America is basically being in love with someone that does not love you back.”
“You can’t divorce us from this history. I’m patriotic. Sometimes that can be a little bit of a conflict because I know the good parts of our history and I know the bad parts of our history, but it’s still our history.”
— Patricia Andrews-Keenan, founder of Pigment International
Political Context: Art During Turbulent Times
The “Glory! Glory!” exhibition opens amid significant political tension. The Trump administration is currently awarding National Endowment for the Arts grants celebrating America’s 250th anniversary while simultaneously dismantling civil rights protections and diversity initiatives. Notably, Pigment International was not selected as a NEA grantee, yet secured state funding support from Rep. Kimberly du Buclet, who chairs the Museum, Arts, Culture and Entertainment committee.
This dynamic creates powerful artistic resistance. Reggie McFly’s acrylic painting “In the Land of the Free” reimagines “The Scourged Back,” the famous Civil War photograph showing whip scars on an enslaved person. McFly, 37, of Roseland, grew up revering the flag and national anthem: “But seeing the image of slavery, how could you ever disconnect the two?” he asks. “Did that freedom ever include us?”
Why These Voices Matter in 2026 and Beyond
Candace Hunter of Kenwood refused to agonize over inclusion, stating plainly: “We have never really been included in the full understanding of the word ‘American’ by the people who own the word.” Her works emphasize how nothing American can function without Black contributions and history. She incorporated mud cloth, African prints, and cotton from enslaved labor, making the invisible visible. Her piece “Birth of a New Nation” features a carved Makonde belly mask with the flag flowing from a split, symbolizing birth and transformation.
What makes “Glory! Glory!” essential viewing is its refusal to offer comfort. These artists don’t ask permission to tell America’s full, complicated story. Instead, they demand that the flag and national symbols acknowledge the blood, sweat, and tears Black Americans contributed while facing systematic exclusion and violence. In a year celebrating 250 years of American history, these seven reimagined flags speak louder than official narratives.
Sources
- Chicago Sun-Times – “Black artists express complicated relationship with U.S. flag in show honoring nation’s 250th anniversary” by Erica Thompson, February 21, 2026
- Pigment International – Official exhibition information and artist bios for Glory! Glory!
- Zhou B Art Center – Venue details and exhibition logistics
