Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama’s Leaves of Grass 2012-2021. 2021. met all the criteria for great art: It was relevant, ambitious, thought-provoking and visually striking. The installation was part of artist Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons’ Engine for Art, Democracy and Justice — a trans-institutional initiative between Fisk University, the Frist Art Museum, Millions of Conversations and Vanderbilt University. Under Mahama’s direction, worn jute bags were hand-stitched together by dozens of Nashvillians and wrapped around Fisk’s historic Little Theatre. The installation spoke to specific and universal traumas while showing the possibilities of perseverance and collaboration.
