Liberation-focused spiritual practitioners such as Conjure men and women and Rootworkers have equipped their communities with guidance, resources, and protection against systemic forms of oppression for centuries. While some practitioners were part of a closed practice, some workers seamlessly blended their works with quotidian life, thus creating an ever-evolving lexicon of protections that morphs to cloak Black folks against subjugation in all the ways it manifests.

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This visual art installation highlights the material and symbolic culture(s) of Conjure and venerative practices from historical records and personal practice. Utilizing the visual language of quilting, Black cultural symbology, and illustration, we specifically call upon viewers to reflect on their relationship to their own power and magic while honoring the ancestors whose seeds blossomed into the roots that fortify us today. Specifically, we hope those who experience Requiem for Black Survival will be empowered to reflect on the everyday musings of the mundane that are directly tied to sources of liberation that can fuel their own survival.
 

Requiem for Black Survival is both an autobiographical, artistic, and venerative endeavor between artists Sharbreon Plummer & Lance L. Smith. Originally connected through creative practice, our relationship deepened into that of spiritual kinship over the past six years. As we’ve cultivated our own individual work in Conjuration, we’ve remained connected through our mutual honoring of land, our foremothers, and our communal empowerment through Black cultural and nature-based spiritual practice. Through this fellowship, we have created new work that not only speaks to this relational aspect of personal Conjuration methods but also draws upon Black women-led practices and materiality that serve as the foundations that continue to inform generations of Conjure workers.