The Fort Worth African American Museum and Cultural Center will have its grand opening as part of an art exhibition during the National Juneteenth Museum’s second Freedom Vibes festival.
The “All ’n All: Artists Embracing Community” art exhibition, named after the 1977 album by the band Earth, Wind & Fire, will be held at the Fort Worth African American Museum, 3100-3104 E. Rosedale St., and Kinfolk House, 1913 Wallace St. A public reception is planned from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 12, and the exhibits will remain on view through Saturday, Aug. 15 at both locations.
Christopher Blay, director of public programs at the National Juneteenth Museum, said this year’s theme for the Freedom Vibes Festival is celebrating community with the artists and institutions who embody it.
“We realize and recognize that they’re aligned with our mission,” Blay said, “So it was important to work inside a community to reflect community as we get closer to when our own museum will open its doors.”
The exhibition will feature paintings, photographs and mixed-media works by 11 artists from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex whose work explores themes of community. Artwork from all artists will be displayed at both museums. Featured artists include Tatyana Alanis; Jeremy Biggers; Missy Burton; C.H.O.K.E.; Jennifer Cowley; Charles Gray; Riley Holloway; Michael E. Johnson; Vanessa Meshack; Evita Tezeno; and Donnie Williams.
The art exhibition will be the first show for the Fort Worth African American Museum. In January, the city council approved reallocating $40,000 to support building improvements on two properties the museum acquired in July 2025.
The two buildings total 5,000 square feet and are at 3100 and 3104 East Rosedale St., across from Texas Wesleyan University in the Polytechnic Heights neighborhood in east Fort Worth.
At the time, John Barnett, co-chair of the organization’s steering committee, told the Star-Telegram the museum’s mission is to preserve African American history and culture locally and beyond.
In 2020, the city’s Neighborhood Services Department, Fort Worth Housing Solutions and a subcommittee of the African American Steering Committee began developing criteria for an institution to preserve the history and culture of African Americans, with an emphasis on the stories of people in Fort Worth.
It arose from redevelopment discussions about Butler Place, a public housing project that closed in December 2020. In a series of community workshops, stakeholders proposed establishing an African American museum to mitigate the redevelopment’s adverse impact on the Black community’s historic resources.
The Freedom Vibes festival will take place from June 11-20, featuring a variety of performances, workshops, and exhibitions. It will be held in various locations. The festival helps support the museum’s capital campaign and elevates its exposure.
Juneteenth was an informal holiday for decades, celebrated with parades, barbecues, and other gatherings. Fort Worth has celebrated Juneteenth since 1882.
In 1979, Texas became the first to declare Juneteenth a state holiday. After Fort Worth’s own Opal Lee symbolically walked 1,400 miles to Washington, D.C., to get nationwide recognition of Juneteenth, President Joe Biden signed legislation designating it as a federal holiday in 2021. The National Juneteenth Museum will tell the story of the national holiday and how it came to be.
For more information on the “All ’n All: Artists Embracing Community” art exhibition and Freedom Vibes, visit freedomvibes.com.
