To all appearances, Kinya Christian is a successful Northwest Arkansas businesswoman and artist. She's the founder of 4209 Creative, and her brightly colored impressionist artwork was recently part of a "Social Connecting Campaign" outreach effort during the covid-19 shutdown at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville. She's studying to become a certified sommelier, and her husband, Emory Christian, is the proprietor of the new Torchy's Tacos location in Fayetteville.
But there's more to Christian's story. She is a person of color -- "my family spans all shades of black and brown," she says -- and that means she faces challenges many of her acquaintances and colleagues are only now beginning to imagine.
"My truest friends -- white and any other race -- have always believed me when I would talk about my experience as a Black woman," Christian says. "They have always respected me and showed love and empathy. But I know there's a whole circle of people who passively know me, and it seems, I'm sure, to them, that I get along just fine. What they fail to appreciate is the great lengths I go to to keep up that appearance."
Those people, says Christian, often say things like "You're different," "I don't see color," "We're all the same; we bleed the same," "There are plenty of successful Black people," and lately, "Do you know [Black Lives Matter critic] Candace Owens?"
"Those are the people who need the most help," Christian says in light of recent national events. "Instead of making the comments or asking me if I've listened to some problematic pundit, they would be better served just opening their ears and hearts to the reality that my existence in this world is very different than theirs."
In the beginning
Christian grew up in Independence, Mo., a suburb of Kansas City.
"The racial makeup of that suburb in the 1980s and '90s had to be over 90% Caucasian," she recalls. "While I probably wasn't the first Black student at the elementary school I attended, I was certainly among the first, and at the time, the only one I can remember. At least it felt as though that was the case! When I started elementary school, I remember my mother joining the PTA and volunteering often -- I'm sure to watch over myself and later my younger sister. And yes, I do remember dealing with racial slurs and mistreatment by more than a few children, and more than once in my time at every school I attended in Independence.
"I can remember my parents preparing us for how people would treat us and telling us to always work hard -- never give 'them' any reason to find fault," she says. "We always excelled at everything we did -- probably to the chagrin of those who sought to hold us back."
Christian dreamed of being an astronomer when she was growing up -- "clearly that didn't pan out," she says with a laugh -- but she was also influenced by Missouri native Thomas Hart Benton, whose legacy as one of the founders of the Regionalist art movement was required learning in the Independence school system. And in high school, she started working on school publications like the newspaper and yearbook.
"It definitely served as my foundation in print and graphic design," she recalls. However, "I went to school to major in business and specialize in computer information systems. That didn't last. I ended up taking a job with a yearbook publishing company, got married and moved to Arkansas instead."
The year was 1999, and Christian and her first husband bought a house in Lowell.
"I remember driving to shop in Fayetteville to see other Black people," she says. "And I went back to Kansas City a lot -- putting 50,000 miles on a vehicle in 18 months!"
She also remembers that prejudice lingered just below the surface at the turn of the 21st century. A prominent Northwest Arkansas businessman stopped at her house one day when she happened to be outside.
"Turned out he was very familiar with my in-laws at the time. He asked me how I liked living here. I told him that there weren't many people who looked like me, and that I'd have to get used to it. He said, 'The only color people care about around here is green. And you're a pretty young lady; you'll be fine. Yep, you sure are pretty!' So, yeah. That happened. And there are too many accounts to give of the biases and instances of slurs directed at me here."
But Christian continued to carve out her niche in the arts and business communities, always well aware "there are entire segments of the Black community that have a struggle greater than mine, being held back by redlining, lack of healthcare and basic education, and all other forms of insidious systemic racism."
"People need to realize that racism is defined as a power structure of socio-economic actions, practices and beliefs that allow one group to put a system in place where they use their race to direct discrimination against people of a different race," she says. "It has been around since the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Racism is nothing new in America, but too much of the conversation mistakes being prejudiced for being racist. Racism can only exist when one group has power and influence over another."
'The Black Experience'
Christian had her own eyes opened to history she'd never really been taught when she discovered The 1619 Project last year.
The 1619 Project is described as "an ongoing initiative from The New York Times Magazine that began in August 2019, the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe the country's history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans at the very center of our national narrative."
"Gwen Kelly, a veteran marketing executive, and diversity, equity, and inclusion strategist, encouraged me to read it," Christian says. "I had heard of it, but hadn't taken the time to read it. I decided, as an artist and a Black woman, I could identify with many of [reporter] Nikole Hannah-Jones' thoughts. So I decided to curate an exhibit to feature Arkansas artists, to show through art the Black experience and to highlight The 1619 Project and its timeline. Gwen wanted to introduce The 1619 Project to the Northwest Arkansas community, and through my exhibit, we did that.
"My goal for this exhibit -- titled 'Reflections of The Black Experience' -- is for people to be enlightened through education and inspired by the artwork," Christian said at the time. "Do I believe such an endeavor will solve the disparities experienced in our society? Realistically, no; however, I do believe that a person has within his or her power to change if the desire is there. Knowledge has the power to eliminate fear. Art is a therapy that could aid in healing the trauma of racism."
"My artwork reflects the story of Africans' and African-Americans' journey -- it's part of my heritage through tragedy and triumph from slavery to freedom," says Bentonville artist and one of the exhibitors, Leona Hunter-Wade. "I seek to touch the feelings and conscience of the visitor through my work -- scenes of culture and everyday life and contributions to the building of America.
"As a transplant from Detroit, and as an artist, I've found my footing here in Northwest Arkansas," she adds.
The exhibit opened at the Rogers Experimental House during February to mark Black History Month, then moved to the Trammel Gallery at the Rogers Historical Museum on Feb. 29.
"It was to move from there to a location, at the time, to be determined," Christian says. "And then covid-19 happened. It's been there since. Once I got out of my feelings -- it took some time with everything that's transpired so far this year -- I decided I would work on making the exhibit virtual. The museum director, Serena Barnett, reached out to offer to keep the exhibit through the rest of the year. With this generous offer, I am working on not only making the exhibit virtual, but adding more artwork to it -- so if there are any artists interested in participating in this exhibit, please reach out!"
"The Trammel Gallery provides us with a flexible space within the museum galleries that can be used for temporary exhibits, such as the 'Reflections of the Black Experience,' and special events," Barnett says. "We cannot change our history, but we can certainly learn from it. Educating ourselves on where we've come from is the first step in making positive changes in ourselves and in our society.
"RHM is dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of the diversity of people in our community," Barnett goes on. "In response to current events, RHM will work harder to ensure that we tell the inclusive history of all people who live and have lived in our area and create a space for open dialogue to discuss our local and national history together. When the museum closed in March due to covid-19, RHM had just provided a platform for discussion on Black dysphoria in America with the 'Reflections of the Black Experience' exhibit. By extending the dates of 'Reflections of the Black Experience' until Dec. 31, we hope to give the opportunity to anyone who would like to visit or revisit the exhibit in-person when the museum is able to reopen to the public. However, not knowing when the museum will be able to reopen, we are pleased to hear that Kinya Christian will soon be offering a virtual version of this exhibit."
"Ultimately, I want to see a permanent home for local and regional Black and brown artists to display their work, and for the public to continue to be educated and inspired by it," Christian concludes.
Go Online!
‘Reflections of the Black Experience’
Beginning June 16, visit KinyaChristian.com to view the exhibit in its different stages, learn about the artists and see the current collection.
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