{"id":147394,"date":"2026-02-02T11:46:48","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T11:46:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/147394\/"},"modified":"2026-02-02T11:46:48","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T11:46:48","slug":"holding-spaces-exhibit-honors-resilience-of-black-businesses-in-austin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/147394\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Holding Spaces’ exhibit honors resilience of Black businesses in Austin"},"content":{"rendered":"

A barber\u2019s chair sits in The Gallery at the Austin Central Library. The leather is creased and worn. Stuffing pokes out from one corner of the seat. An ashtray on the armrest reveals its age.<\/p>\n

A 5-foot-tall photograph of Kevin Asperry looking through the window of Marshall\u2019s Barber Shop hangs on the wall behind it. The photo is one of about a dozen in the new \u201cHolding Spaces\u201d<\/a> exhibit.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s looking out over the chair,\u201d photographer Steven Hatchett said. \u201cHe sees this as a prized possession.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe folks that choose to stay, the folks that do the work, and the folks who choose to hold space, they are the lifeblood of the culture here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Steven Hatchett, photographer<\/p>\n

Hatchett is the cofounder of _OFCOLOR<\/a>, a nonprofit arts group that promotes the work of underrepresented communities in Austin. In \u201cHolding Spaces,\u201d he makes the case for supporting Black businesses and the community they create to preserve cultural history and combat gentrification.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s also hoping to tell a deeper story of resilience and belonging.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though the idea of displacement and folks leaving Austin is a very real thing,\u201d Hatchett said, \u201cthe folks that choose to stay, the folks that do the work, and the folks who choose to hold space, they are the lifeblood of the culture here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The exhibit includes portraits and stories from RichesArt Gallery, Black Pearl Books, Kicking It ATX and others. It\u2019s on view through March 29, with an opening reception Thursday. There’s also a panel discussion later this month and a community discussion planned for March.<\/p>\n

Taylor Danielle Davis, an independent curator and cultural arts producer, helped put the show together.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere’s been a huge fight to protect cultural spaces, especially in East Austin and the historic Six Square<\/a>,\u201d she said. \u201cSo to hold onto those spaces and to really highlight that they’re here and that they are important, that they\u2019re doing great work, I think that that’s what this project means to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Michael Minasi<\/p>\n

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KUT News<\/p>\n

Hatchett photographed Virginia Brown at her farm outside of Giddings. He says she saw the opportunity to own land as a way to pay homage to her family, who were sharecroppers. <\/p>\n

Davis said she worked with Hatchett to make the exhibit feel immersive and to bring the businesses into the gallery space. They collected objects \u2014 like the barber\u2019s chair \u2014 from some of the people featured in the photos: books recommended by Black Pearl, a sneaker from Kickin It ATX.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of those little things sort of make this more than just a photo exhibit,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd that was really exciting to kind of work with [Hatchett] to figure that out.\u201d<\/p>\n

A giant vinyl photo of Minnie Little hangs across the room from the barber’s chair. She\u2019s staring into a mirror at her salon, Shag Noir. A baggie in a display case next to the photo contains a lock of curly gray hair \u2014 one of Little\u2019s offerings for the show.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as I picked it up and I held it in my hand. I was, like, this feels very heavy,\u201d said Davis, who asked participants to submit objects that were meaningful to them. \u201cI was like \u2014 who’s is this? She said, ‘That’s my grandmother’s hair.’ Very casual about it.”<\/p>\n

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Another display features handmade wooden spoons belonging to Chi Ndika, the owner of Luv Fats Ice Cream. She said she grew up using similar spoons on trips to Kenya when she was young.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just something that reminds me of my family and the food that I used to eat when I would go to Kenya,\u201d Ndika said. \u201cIt\u2019s part of our culture.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ndika said there used to be a lot more Black people in Austin when she was growing up. But since she started her business, she\u2019s built a new community. Her shop is a place to experience joy and meet new people, she said.<\/p>\n

A photo in the exhibit shows Ndika smiling from the service window of her former ice cream shop on North Lamar. She was forced to move last year after the rent went up almost $1,000. She’s waiting on permits from the city to open a new brick-and-mortar space in East Austin.<\/p>\n

Hatchett said he came up with the idea for the exhibit after hearing stories about the pressure to keep Black-owned businesses open.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat came out of hearing those stories became sort of a spiritual awakening around the idea of us wanting to hold a space for our humanity in safety and in camaraderie with what it means to be Black in Austin,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Hatchett, who moved here from Chicago nine years ago, said Black newcomers can feel disconnected in a city until they find community. These Austin business owners want to provide that community.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that’s the most important piece to me,\u201d he said. \u201cIf folks can get an eye over the shoulder of one of these entrepreneurs and learn that through the blood, sweat, tears [they’ve developed the] ability to say, \u2018I deserve to be here and here’s why.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n