Global Black Identity and Artistic Expression

Moderated by Quincy Swatson, Founder and Owner of the Kofi Collection, Global Black Identity and Artistic Expression invites artists Malayah Reynolds, Charles Lyons, Tamara Howard, and Amani Davis to reflect on Blackness as a global experience. This conversation will explore how diaspora, migration, and cross-cultural connection shape artistic identity and serve as powerful sources of inspiration. Through their discussion, artists will consider how global Black narratives influence their work and how these stories are woven into local artistic expressions with both cultural specificity and universal resonance.

Meet the Panelists

Malayah Reynolds
“My name is R’lin and I’m from North Philadelphia. I’ll be graduating from Carnegie Mellon University with a major in Fine Arts. I began my practice making hyper-realistic portraits out of graphite and charcoal, where I captured the essence of friends and family. In my current practice I’ve found a connection with oil painting. A medium that became very meditative for me. Painting offers me liberation that my meticulous pencil drawings do not. I explore the physical manifestation of mental exhaustion, utilizing both portraiture and figuration to represent the tension between mind-body connections. The forms that I paint are contorted and strange, but recognizably human. A visual way to express how excessive thought patterns trigger anxiety. Despite this, I’m deeply engaged in the Philadelphia art scene. My work is currently featured in the 4.o collection at The Fitler club with four of my pencil works. I started furthering my involvement in the art community to become familiar with artists in my city as well as learning newer processes. This led me to murals, and the idea of art being more accessible to the black community to regain black consciousness through artistic expression. The summer of 2024, I joined the Mural arts Philadelphia program where I collaborated with Sammy Konvat on “Pomegranates and Plate Shards”, 2024, located at 212 Montrose street in South Philadelphia.”
Instagram: miarlln

Charles Lyons
Charles Lyons is a visual artist living and working in The Hill District community of Pittsburgh PA. His work is a direct influence and representation of the community in which he lives. Inspired by the Hill District (past & present), his purpose in art is to allow his audience to see themselves or someone they know in his art.
Website: linktr.ee/artbyc.lyons
Instagram: artbyc.lyons

Tamara Howard
“My journey began in 1996, inspired by the colorful stories passed down about my great-grandmother, Maggie V. Folk McClellan. I’m honored to own three of her quilts today, each a testament to her artistry and resilience. Her modern, intuitive style warmed my grandmother, my mother, and now me—three generations touched by her hands and creativity. Her legacy deeply influences my own quilting practice, connecting me to Appalachian and Southern African American traditions where storytelling, resourcefulness, and familial care are stitched into every block. This connection sparked a deep curiosity in me. Though I didn’t have access to a sewing machine at the time, I took a few classes to get started, then taught myself patchwork techniques, color theory, quilt layout, and design—gradually building my skills and deepening my understanding of this tradition. Today, quilting is central to both my personal life and my community work. As the founder of The Quilt Empowerment Project, I merge this traditional art form with my background in engineering to offer structured, creative, and culturally responsive quilting education. Quilting is a daily practice that allows me to express myself, connect with others, and preserve cultural memory through fabric and thread. In my community, it serves as a tool for healing, storytelling, and intergenerational connection—honoring the past while inspiring new traditions. In my own work, I often incorporate African fabrics, historic block patterns, and symbolic color choices that reflect family history and ancestral narratives. Each quilt becomes a visual archive—preserving cultural memories that might otherwise be forgotten.”
Website: www.folkquilts.com
Instagram: folkquilts

Amani Davis
Amani Davis is the son of an African-American father and Jamaican mother, grown up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Preferred media include acrylic paint and film photography. His work is heavily influenced by his medical education, and career as a physician. He is currently a resident physician in Ophthalmology.
Instagram: yardydoc