And as the exhibition's strategic beauty partner, READY to BEAUTY presents American, Black & Beautiful, an evocative "art meets beauty" activation exploring how Black beauty has reshaped America in its own image, driving cultural impact, creative expression, and aesthetic influence. "The Whitney Museum of American Art is thrilled to collaborate with READY to BEAUTY to stage American, Black & Beautiful, an activation that brings the worlds of art and beauty into dialogue. This partnership recognizes the lasting impact of representation and the transformative influence of Black beauty on the American imagination," says Brianna Lowndes, Chief Marketing Officer at the Whitney Museum of American Art. For READY to BEAUTY partnering with the Whitney Museum to honor Amy Sherald's portraiture is a powerful example of cultural memory, where Black beauty is rendered with dignity, depth, and permanence.
This multi-tiered activation features a thought-provoking panel discussion inspired by themes within the "Amy Sherald: American Sublime" exhibition that examines what it means to be both Black and American—and the expectation, both imposed and self-determined, to show up beautifully in this country. "For Black Americans, beauty has never been about just aesthetics. It is an act of assertion, resilience, and history in motion—a powerful tool of definition and cultural transformation," says Corey Huggins, Founder & CEO of READY to BEAUTY.
Taking place on April 25, 2025, this dynamic panel discussion brings together trailblazers from beauty, media, and culture. Moderated by Victor Vaughns, Jr, Beauty & Fashion Lead at EBONY, the panel features industry voices including Desiree Verdejo, Founder of Hyper Skin Care; Robyn Atwater, Founder of CURLDAZE Hair Care; Danessa Myricks, Founder & CEO of Danessa Myricks Beauty; Teri Johnson, Founder of Harlem Brands (Candle & Perfume Company); and A'Lelia Bundles, Great-Great Granddaughter & Biographer of Madam C.J. Walker, Founder of the Madam Walker Family Archives; and with a special presentation to Janell Stephens, Founder, CEO & Master Mixtress of Camille Rose Naturals, the last major independently owned natural hair care brand that revolutionized the beauty industry. Together, these trailblazing entrepreneurs & culture commentators will engage in a candid, no-holds-barred conversation about Black beauty—how it exists with and without the white gaze—along with the urgency of cultural preservation and what it truly means to be American, Black & Beautiful.
As part of this partnership, READY to BEAUTY is also curating an exclusive VIB (Very Important Beauty!) "behind-the-portrait" guided tour with Rujeko Hockley, the Whitney Museum's Arnhold Associate Curator and "Amy Sherald: American Sublime" presentation organizer. Designed to engage and honor leading Black beauty professionals, this intimate experience set against the backdrop of Amy Sherald's groundbreaking exhibition, will serve as the foundational gathering for a forthcoming "legacy" initiative dedicated to preserving and celebrating Black beauty's cultural and historical impact. Attendees—Black Founders, Executives, Artists, and Other Key Black Contributors to the beauty space—will form a representative body shaping the initiative's future. "At a time when Black history faces increasing erasure, this "legacy" initiative will stand as a powerful counterforce, ensuring that the rich history of Black beauty is not just acknowledged, but is actually cemented in the cultural and historical record," says Huggins.
"Amy Sherald: American Sublime" will be on view at the Whitney Museum from April 9th through August 10, 2025. And READY to BEAUTY will support the exhibition's run with a full 360-degree marketing campaign—including a podcast series, curated email storytelling, art driven social media engagements, and strategic brand activations—all designed to celebrate Black beauty while ensuring its cultural significance is seen, honored and never erased.
Media Contact:
Corey Huggins, READY to BEAUTY
917-428-1379, [email protected]
About READY to BEAUTY
READY to BEAUTY is the Industry's First Global Think Tank for Multicultural Entrepreneurs & Brands. We function as a Business Designer, drawing the blueprint for Multicultural brands' success and offering them expertly tailored market assistance for starting, scaling & growing beauty businesses. Each season, we assemble a collection of industry insiders and innovative business themes with a mission to enhance the multicultural beauty market. READY to BEAUTY has also launched a Capital Growth Fund operating under the banner Ready to Invest for a first-of-its-kind of fund specifically focused on multicultural beauty brand development. Visit readytobeauty.com
About The Whitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, founded in 1930 by the artist and philanthropist Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875–1942), houses the foremost collection of American art from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Mrs. Whitney, an early and ardent supporter of modern American art, nurtured groundbreaking artists when audiences were still largely preoccupied with the Old Masters. From her vision arose the Whitney Museum of American Art, which has been championing the most innovative art of the United States for ninety years. The core of the Whitney's mission is to collect, preserve, interpret, and exhibit American art of our time and serve a wide variety of audiences in celebration of the complexity and diversity of art and culture in the United States. Through this mission and a steadfast commitment to artists, the Whitney has long been a powerful force in support of modern and contemporary art and continues to help define what is innovative and influential in American art today.
About "Amy Sherald: American Sublime" (Exhibition Overview)
American Sublime explores the work of one of the most preeminent artists of our time. Arranged chronologically, the exhibition begins with Amy Sherald's poetic early portraits and leads into the distinct and striking figure paintings for which she is best known. In her intentional privileging of Black Americans as her subjects, Sherald tells stories of a population underrepresented in traditional portraiture. Influenced by her childhood fascination with family photographs—a black-and-white portrait of her grandmother in particular—Sherald aims to portray Black people in quiet, authentic moments. She chooses subjects who vary in age, gender, and identity, placing them in scenes from everyday life to share perspectives she wants to see depicted in the world.
About the Amy Sherald (The Artist)
Born in Columbus, Georgia, and now based in the New York City area, Amy Sherald (b. 1973) documents contemporary African American experience in the United States through arresting, intimate portraits. Sherald engages with the history of photography and portraiture, inviting viewers to participate in a more complex debate about accepted notions of race and representation, and to situate Black life in American art.
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