Ashna Balroop September 28, 2025
Students reflect on the Solace and Sisterhood Exhibit at The Driskell Center (Ashna Balroop/The Black Explosion).
Solace and Sisterhood, The Driskell Center’s fall semester exhibit, amplifies the resilience and bond of Black sisterhood through the varying perspectives of three prominent female artists.
The exhibit, which is on view until Dec. 5, aims to encompass a diverse range of relationships between women, from biological relationships to friendships. It showcases the impact sisterhood has on these relationships and examines the solace and understanding Black women in these relationships receive, according to a press release by The Driskell Center.
The artists, Lavett Ballard, Amber Robles-Gordon and Evita Tezeno, draw inspiration from their own experiences, as well as broader African American and African diasporic narratives, according to The Driskell Center. In the exhibit, a diverse range of materials were used — from photography and collages to painting and other mixed media — each artist brought a different perspective to the meaning of sisterhood.
“I have very strong female figures in my work, and it’s showing how we gather our strength from the female gender,” said Tezeno, reflecting on how she defines sisterhood in her art. “I feel that…we are the strength of the gender, because we birth babies, we are the mother, we are the friend, we are the aunties.”
“Morning Tea with Me” by Evita Tezeno (Ashna Balroop/The Black Explosion).
Tezeno’s work, which is characterized by bright colors, patterns and layered collage works, celebrates women as a whole, while incorporating race and history.
“It’s black joy, bringing happiness, showing a togetherness, family, [and] the joy of community,” Tezeno said, explaining that she wants people to understand the importance of having a community of people who support you.
“In the House of my Soul” by Evita Tezeno (Ashna Balroop/The Black Explosion).
Robles-Gordon defines sisterhood as an essential form of bondmaking, which has become extremely important due to the current state of the world.
Some of Robles-Gordon’s work touches on social justice issues, while some of it stems from her feelings. One of her works on display at The Driskell Center, titled “Una visión de sí misma” (A Vision of Self), is a quilt made from reclaimed materials that symbolizes growth, healing and renewal — essentially, what you want for your future self.
A mixed media work by Amber Robles-Gordon (Ashna Balroop/The Black Explosion).
“I always try to pair the best technique versus what I am trying to say, to complete and to extend or convey a narrative,” Robles-Gordon said.
Robles-Gordon hopes that UMD community members visiting the exhibit can take note of the print messaging she has left on one her works, “En homenaje al amor, la naturaleza y la amistad” (In tribute to love, nature, and friendship), which emphasize faith and love.
Robles-Gordon also wants viewers to understand that “introspection is imperative at every stage of life.” It is also imperative, in her eyes, to recognize the importance of self-reflection and understand how society influences you.
Hermione Pickett, academic advisor for the School of Public Policy, visited the exhibit because of a recommendation from a colleague. She found herself resonating with the pieces, especially since one of them reminded her of growing up and attending church.
“I see myself in some of these portraits here, so I’m glad I came and experienced it,” Pickett said.
Curated by Lauren Davidson, an independent scholar, the exhibit is also supported in part by Maryland’s Arts of All Initiative, the Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and the Maryland State Arts Council.
Michelle Rowley, an associate professor in the WGSS department, believes that the exhibit represents a sense of kinship larger than biological sisterhood and emphasizes the resilience and strength that come out when women support each other, which aligns with the program.
“It is a reminder that community is a space that provides a respite, that community is a place that provides support, that a lot of that work happens through the lens of sisterhood,” Rowley said.
Rowley said that she hopes students can see the important work that’s happening at The Driskell Center, along with looking at some of the courses the WGSS department has to create a “little space” in their university life.
“I think that the themes of sisterhood, the themes of resilience, self-representation and identity will provoke some important questions when students are able to see the pieces that are on display,” Rowley said.
These questions will help students realize “the importance of community and the critical role Black women play in holding communities together,” according to Rowley. The exhibit is a “visual exploration” of how sisterhood goes further than biology, and ultimately becomes a space of support.
https://blackexplosionnews.com/2025/09/28/driskell-centers-newest-exhibit-aims-to-reshape-the-meaning-of-black-sisterhood/