Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images; David Redfern/Redferns/Getty
Venus Williamsis teaming up with artist Adam Pendleton to transformNina Simone’s childhood home.
Born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina, in 1933, Simone earned a reputation as the voice of the civil rights movement as racial tensions reached a peak in the 1960s. She wrote and performed the activist song “Mississippi Goddam” during the historic Selma-to-Montgomery marches in 1965.
Courtesy The Nina Simone Project
“I’m so excited to be a part of this expansive project centering on the life and legacy of Nina Simone, who has been a huge inspiration for so many,” Williams, 42, said in a statement.
The joint efforts to restore Simone’s childhood home “brings to fruition an unprecedented collaboration across the worlds of art, philanthropy, and historic preservation,” as Simone’s “cultural legacy is of great personal significance to all the artists donating work,” the press release stated.
Nancy Pierce / National Trust for Historic Preservation
According to the release, Pendleton and fellow artists Ellen Gallagher, Rashid Johnson and Julie Mehretu purchased Simone’s property in 2017. Their work will be featured at the event alongside the art of Mary Weatherford, Stanley Whitney, Robert Longo, Cecily Brown and more.
“Nina Simone’s childhood home provides a lens into the contours of her life growing up in the Jim Crow South,” added Brent Leggs, executive director of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund and Senior VP of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
“Our partnership with the artists, Venus Williams, and Pace Gallery is a powerful demonstration of how art and preservation practice can join forces to permanently preserve Simone’s remarkable legacy,” continued Leggs. “Together, we will secure the home’s future and inspire a new generation of diverse leaders who will memorialize the places where Black history happened.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The public is able to bid in the online auction until May 22 at 3 p.m. EDT.
All artwork can be seen in person and online at Pace Gallery in New York until May 20.
source: people.com
