Growing up in the wide-open spaces of Denver, Colorado can be an isolating experience. For a young Black girl, though, the silence can be even more stifling. Courtney Brooks, an artist, and the first curator-in-residence for the Atlanta Beltline, as well as the first Black woman public art curator in Atlanta---took inspiration from her surroundings, like her parents’ love for Black culture magazines like Ebony and Jet and soul vinyls. Now, she is eager to share her story -- and the story of other black women -- through her three-part art exhibit Journey of A Black Girl.

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I just want to leave a legacy for little girls who look like me to know that loving yourself gives you the ability to truly love others. With that power, and what you are passionate about, [you] can change the world. My art activism is to encourage creativity.”

-Courtney Brooks

At one point, the ArtsXchange's Jack Sinclair Gallery Curator, Visual Artist and Art Instructor Courtney Brooks resembled the same little girls she hopes to one day inspire.

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As I sat on the bench alone, strangers waved and smiled as if we’d crossed paths a thousand times before. A little girl asked to pet my dog and told me all about the King of Pops popsicle her Mom finally let her have on a school night. I sat feeling as if I’d stepped off the city streets into a small town escape. Swirled around the busy city of Atlanta, Georgia the (soon-to-be) 22 mile pathway invites people to stroll along restaurants, parks, and an amazing display of community art. 

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