Entertainment

Artist Ise Lyfe Turns Abandoned Housing Project into Work of Art

Published

13 years ago

June 21, 2013

Abandoned, boarded up, and forgotten about housing complexes sit in communities throughout Oakland. Now, one artist has returned to his hometown to transform one dilapidated East Oakland housing project, Greenside, into a work of art.

Oakland native and renowned international and interdisciplinary artist Ise Lyfe is using the property to showcase a new level of a conceptual multi-media art exhibit.

“I feel it’s really important to take the opportunity to tell the story, not only of this particular site but of folks growing up in public housing,” said Ise Lyfe. “I see housing as a human right, and all people have a right to good housing, healthy housing.”

Ise Lyfe has been featured on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam series and traveled the world telling stories of struggle, pain, sacrifice, growth, and change. Unwilling to forget his hometown, he has pushed himself to the limit to create a body of “provocative” art that tells a story of Oakland’s public housing system in the art exhibit, “Brighter than Blight”.

Greenside housing complex, located on the corner of 77th and Bancroft avenues, has been condemned for a decade. During the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, the project was a major hub for drugs, violence, and illegal activity. Ise Lyfe and his brother Michael Savannah grew up in East Oakland and now call the abandoned complex the “standing dinosaur” of the community.

“For years this site was notorious for illegal activity, but a lot of people have come from this place and survived the struggle of living in Oakland,” said Savannah, who is managing the “Brighter than Blight” project. Oakland’s Affordable Housing Initiative provided the funding for Ise Lyfe to produce the project. The Oakland Housing Authority and District 6 City Councilmember Desley Brooks have also fully supported the program.

“The story of East Oakland is typically told from a negative lens… In the Brighter Than Blight Art Exhibit Ise Lyfe has brilliantly communicated the beauty, creativity, complexity, strength, humor and depth of the lives of the residents of “Greenside”,” said Councilmember Brooks. “This project is the first of its kind in the country between a local artist, a city council office and a Public Housing Authority. I am thankful to Oakland Housing Authority Executive Director Eric Johnson and his staff and the California Affordable Housing Initiative for their vision and courage to move this project forward,” she said.

Ise Lyfe’s conceptual art exhibit will showcase’ photography, paintings, sculptures, and literary works to tell the story of public housing. A tribute to grandmother’s house, video montages featuring testimonials of former Greenside residents and life size print-outs of provoking spoken word pieces are just a few of the art projects being featured. Savannah says the project is geared to serve as “a voice for those who won’t speak for themselves, to speak for the good and bad happening in public housing so stories won’t go untold.”

More than 30 young people, many of whom are living in public housing complexes, will serve as guides, directing guest through the hour-long exhibit; some youth will share their narratives of growing up in public housing in hopes of encouraging people to become apart of the discourse.

Ise Lyfe hopes his work sparks a trend for more art projects of this sort to happen, and project manager Michael Savannah says expanding the project throughout the city is definitely something they are thinking about once this project is completed.

“When we say ghetto and hood, we think Black. With “Brighter than Blight”, I am saying we are brighter than the negative circumstances here,” Ise Lyfe said.

The exhibit will show for two weeks, June 21 – 23 and June 28 – 30. When the exhibit closes, the art will be placed in museums and public housing complexes throughout the city. Admission to the event is free and all are encouraged to attend.

For more information, visit www.facebook.com/BrighterThanBlight. Visit the Post News Group’s website to get a first look at a pieces he has created for the exhibit. Visit www.postnewsgroup.com

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Arts and Culture

Book Review: Books on Black History and Black Life for Kids

For the youngest reader, “As You Are: A Hope for Black Sons” by Kimberly A. Gordon Biddle, illustrated by David Wilkerson (Magination Press, $18.99) is a book for young Black boys and for their mothers. It’s a hope inside a prayer that the world treats a child gently, and it could make a great baby shower gift.

Published

4 days ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

Photo of Black History Month book covers by Terri Schlichenmeyer.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

Authors: Various, Copyright: c. 2025, 2026, Publishers: Various, SRPs: $17.99-$18.99, Page Counts: Various,

Everybody in your family has stories to share.

Your parents have told you some, no doubt. Your grandparents have offered a few, too, and aunties and uncles have spun some good tales. But there’s so much more to know, so grab one of these great books and learn about Black History and Black life.

For the youngest reader, “As You Are: A Hope for Black Sons” by Kimberly A. Gordon Biddle, illustrated by David Wilkerson (Magination Press, $18.99) is a book for young Black boys and for their mothers. It’s a hope inside a prayer that the world treats a child gently, and it could make a great baby shower gift.

If someone said you couldn’t do something that you were clearly able to do, would you fight to do it anyhow? In the new book, “Remember Her Name! Debbie Allen’s Rise to Fame” by Tami Charles, illustrated by Meredith Lucius (Charlesbridge, $17.99), a young girl in the Jim Crow South is told that she can’t dance because of the color of her skin.

She didn’t listen, though, and neither did her mother, who took her daughter to Mexico, where the girl soared! This is an inspiration for any 5-to-7-year-old; be sure to check out the back-of-the-book information, if you’re an adult fan.

Do you often hear your elders say things that sound like lessons? They might be, so “Where There is Love: A Story of African Proverbs” by Shauntay Grant, illustrated by Leticia Moreno (Penguin Workshop, $18.99) is a book you’ll like. It’s a quick-to-read collection of short proverbs that you can say every day. Kids ages 4-to-6 will easily remember what they find in this book; again, look in the back for more information.

Surely, you love your neighborhood, which is why the tale inside “Main Street: A Community Story about Redlining” by Britt Hawthorne and Tiffany Jewell, illustrated by David Wilkerson (Penguin Kokila, $18.99) is a book for you.

Olivia’s neighborhood is having a block party, but she’s sad when no one shows up. That’s when she learns that “the government” is discriminating against the people and businesses near where she lives. So, what can she and her neighbors do? The answer might inspire 6-to-8-year-old kids to stand up to wrongs they see, and to help make their neighborhoods stronger and safer.

And finally, if a kid wants a book, where can they go to find it? In “I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy” by Mychal Threets, illustrated by Lorraine Nam (Random House, $18.99) is a good introduction to the best of what a library has to offer. The freedom to walk into a library and borrow a book is the theme here, as is the sheer happiness of being welcomed, no matter who you are. This is an easy book for kids as young as two and as old as five to enjoy.

On that note, if you want more, head to that library, or a nearby bookstore. They’ll be glad to see you. They’ve got stories to share.

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Activism

Art of the African Diaspora Celebrates Legacy and Community at Richmond Art Center

Published

5 days ago

February 9, 2026

Oakland Post

‘Be Still...’ by Virginia Jourdan is on display at the Richmond Art Center (RAC), in Richmond, CA. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The 2026 Art of the African Diaspora exhibition is on display at the Richmond Art Center (RAC) through March 14. The one-room gallery bursts with more than 100 works – paintings, photographs, sculptures, and mixed-media pieces – each affirming the power, beauty, and vitality of cultural expression across the African diaspora.

Now in its 29th year, Art of the African Diaspora is the Bay Area’s longest-running exhibition of its kind. Its roots stretch back to 1989, when artist and educator Marie Johnson Calloway founded Colors of Black, a salon for African American artists. That gathering inspired artists Jan Hart-Schuyers and Rae Louise Hayward to establish The Art of Living Black at the Richmond Art Center in 1996. Their vision was to showcase the creativity of emerging and established Black artists, bridging communities and widening access to audiences historically excluded from mainstream art spaces.

Over the decades, that founding vision has expanded and evolved, carried forward by artists, family members, and the Richmond Art Center after the loss of Hart-Schuyers and Hayward. In 2018, a new generation of artists formed a steering committee to organize the event; a year later, the exhibition was renamed Art of the African Diaspora to embrace the broader global connections of people of African descent.

The new name reflects not only a broader cultural lens but also an empowered community network that supports artists across the Bay Area. As part of this year’s programming, RAC will host ‘Art of the African Diaspora: Public Art in Our Communities,’ a free panel on Sat., Feb. 21, from 12 to 1:30 p.m. Artists Kristine Mays, James Moore, and Malik Seneferu will join arts administrator Denise Pate for a conversation on the impact and process of public art. The discussion will be moderated by longtime arts advocate and producer Flo Wiley.

Each panelist brings a distinctive voice to the conversation. Mays, known for her ethereal wire sculptures that capture movement and spirit, has exhibited internationally and is represented in collections ranging from the Smithsonian to the Crocker Art Museum.

Sculptor and painter James Moore creates abstract metal works and colorful field paintings that explore movement, balance, and emotion. His recent public art installations include large-scale pieces in Richmond’s Shields-Reid Park. Malik Seneferu, a self-taught San Francisco native, has built a large body of work celebrating African American life through vibrant murals and expressive figurative art.

Representing the institutional side, Denise Pate oversees public arts investments as director of Community Investments at the San Francisco Arts Commission, advancing racial and cultural equity through funding and advocacy. Together, these artists and administrators will trace how public art emerges, from concept to community collaboration, and why it matters.

The Art of the African Diaspora exhibition runs through March 14 at the Richmond Art Center, 2540 Barrett Ave., Richmond. The center is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission and programs are free and open to the public.

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Alameda County

Black History Events in the East Bay

What began as Negro History Week in 1926 by author and journalist Carter G. Woodson as a way to celebrate the achievements of African Americans, the observance is now a month-long event

Published

5 days ago

February 9, 2026

Oakland Post

The Oakland Black Cowboys Association will hold an event to teach children the love of riding at Fairyland on Feb. 14. Here, a member of the OBCA high-fives a young rider at an event in 2021. Facebook photo.

By Post Staff

What began as Negro History Week in 1926 by author and journalist Carter G. Woodson as a way to celebrate the achievements of African Americans, the observance is now a month-long event, and nearly every day in the Bay Area, there is somewhere to honor the ancestors, our living thought leaders, artists, and activists, and prepare children for the future. Below are just a few places to go.

Lunar New Year X Black History Month 2026: Celebrating Asian & African American Solidarity

Now in its fourth year, the Oakland Asian Cultural Center rolls out its biggest event, featuring lion dancers, drummers, performers, arts & crafts, a Kids + Teens Zone curated by Storyland Collective, a marketplace of local artisans, and free admission for all ages! This event is part of OACC’s ongoing Open E.A.R.S. for Change initiative, launched in 2020 to build stronger relationships between local APIA and Black communities. SambaFunk closes out the day at 3:15 and the Bantaba Drum Call and Comrade Lover Lion Dancers perform shortly after story time for young children at noon. Register for free tickets. https://oacc.liveimpact.org/li/8737/sevent/evt/home/294475/69

Oakland Asian Cultural Center
388 Ninth St. Suite 290
Oakland, CA
Feb. 7, 11 a.m.- 4 p.m.

DIY: Black Culture Bookmark Making

Go to the Golden Gate Branch of the Oakland Public Library for small-scale collaging at this Black-themed make-your-own-bookmarks session.

Bring: Your vision, creativity, and, if you like, wallet-sized photos or images of your favorite Black heroes or family members.

We’ll supply the cardstock paper, African diaspora designs, artwork, images, lettering, glue, scissors, and laminating. This session is suitable for adults and seniors.

Golden Gate Library
5609 San Pablo Ave.
Oakland, CA,
Feb. 11, 5:30-7 p.m.

Oakland Black Cowboy Association Shares Love of the Ride

Celebrate the history, culture, and living legacy of Black cowboys at the Black Cowboy Academy. It will be an interactive day of lasso lessons, pony grooming with real live ponies, and meet and greets with actual cowboys! Fairyland joins hands and hearts with the Oakland Black Cowboy Association and the Metropolitan Horsemen’s Association this Valentine’s Day for an immersive event of learning and love. Included with general admission.

Children’s Fairyland
699 Bellevue Ave.
Sat., Feb. 14, 10 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Love Stories for Black History Month

At the Berkeley Public Library, a children’s book fair “Valentine to Black Stories” will feature some of your favorite Black authors of children’s books!

Come celebrate love, Black authors, and Black stories at this special children’s book fair. They will have free books, crafts and special presentations from Bay Area Black authors.Festivities will feature a collage workshop led by Oakland artist Chanel London of Hella Artsy. Participants will be invited to make collage portraits inspired by artist Derrick Barnes.

Berkeley Central Public Library
2090 Kittredge St. Berkeley, CA
Sat. Feb. 14, 1- 4 p.m.

The Black Child Book Fair (BCBF) from Chicago to Oakland, CA- Book Signing Event

BCBF began in Chicago in 2009 through the vision and experience of author and poet Darryl Harvey. Harvey’s vision brings extraordinary children’s book authors together to close the great need for black representation in children’s books. Engage with authors, participate in story time and fun activities.

Oakland African American Museum and Library
859 14^th St., Oakland CA
Sat. Feb. 21, 12-5 p.m.