Celebrating Black Women’s Resilience Through Art and Community Healing
Tamara Payne, a Baltimore-based artist and scholar, explores the lived experiences of Black and brown women through a multimedia project rooted in biblical symbolism and ancestral echoes. Her work weaves film, portraiture, and vibrant Ankara fabrics into a tapestry of stories that carry the weight of history and the promise of healing. Through community workshops, organic conversations, and collaborative art-making, Payne challenges stereotypes and builds safe spaces for women and girls to reflect, celebrate, and dream together. Her thesis investigates how Black and brown women support and inspire one another through shared experiences, emphasizing the importance of documenting stories and fostering authentic audience engagement. The project prioritizes collaboration, relationship building, and communal practices to encourage personal reflection and understanding of history’s impact.
Using multimedia, film, portraiture, and performance, Payne layers materials to reveal the complexities and depths of issues Black women endure. The vessels in her work symbolize the female figure, nurturing others daily. Workshops and events elevate the experiences of women and girls, making each iteration of the project unique. Influenced by her mother’s legacy and ancestral longings, Payne’s work is a collective effort of many women and girls, with the curated space gaining significance through interaction. Themes include home, memory, grief, healing, safe spaces, communal practices, relationship building, loss, celebration, and grounding.
Payne’s artistic journey began at the Baltimore School for the Arts and continued through studies at Parsons School of Design and the Maryland Institute College of Art, where she earned a BFA and a Master’s in Community Arts. Her passion for humanity has led her to paint and curate murals in impoverished communities worldwide. Known for mosaic murals and collaborations with Black women, her multidisciplinary work spans multimedia, fashion, public installations, film, assemblage, portraiture, and performance art. Her work, influenced by experiences of girlhood and womanhood, focuses on self-exploration, healing, and empowerment of Black and brown women and girls.
Payne has received numerous awards and been featured in publications such as Voyage Baltimore, Bmore Art Magazine, The Baltimore Times, Forbes Magazine, Le Figaro, and Travel Noire. Currently, she is an Associate Professor and pursuing an MFA at MICA, expected to graduate in summer 2025. She invites all to witness her inspiring artistic journey.
“My thesis investigates how Black and brown women support and inspire one another through shared experiences, emphasizing the importance of documenting our stories and reflecting on ancestral echoes. Drawing on biblical symbolism—such as vessels and oil—my work uses multimedia, film, portraiture, and colorful Ankara fabrics to create spaces for authentic engagement and community dialogue. By deconstructing stereotypes and promoting holistic healing, I aim to deepen understanding of Black women’s experiences and foster relationship-building. The process centers on collaboration, organic conversations, and workshops that elevate the voices of women and girls. Each curated project is unique, highlighting the complexity and resilience of our communities while encouraging personal reflection and collective celebration. Influenced by my mother’s legacy and the women around me, this work honors our histories, explores themes of home, memory, healing, and joy, and seeks to empower future generations through representation and shared storytelling.”
About Tamara Payne
Tamara Payne, born in Baltimore, began her artistic journey at the Baltimore School for the Arts and studied Fashion at Parsons School of Design in New York before earning her BFA in painting and ceramics and a Master’s of Community Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art. She has painted and curated murals in communities from Baltimore to South Africa, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico, driven by a passion for art’s role in social change.
A multidisciplinary artist recognized for her mosaic murals and collaborations with Black women, Tamara’s work spans multimedia, public installations, film, assemblage, and performance. Her art is deeply influenced by her experiences of girlhood, womanhood, and memory, focusing on self-exploration, healing, and empowering Black and brown women and girls.
Tamara’s community-based projects have earned her numerous awards and features in publications such as Voyage Baltimore, Bmore Art Magazine, The Baltimore Times,
Forbes, Le Figaro, and Travel Noire. She is currently an Associate Professor and a candidate for an MFA at MICA, graduating in summer 2025. Tamara invites all to witness and be inspired by her ongoing creative journey.