The Light We Share, the new exhibit at the Portal at Toledo School for the Arts, examines the world through the eyes of Black artists.

The exhibit compiles the works of four local Black artists into one show, with works in photography, painting, and more. Curated by James Dickerson, professionally known as dirtykics, the exhibit is a thoughtful meditation on what it means to be Black in Toledo.

The Light We Share opens on Friday with a reception from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and the exhibit runs through Feb. 28 at the gallery, which located at 1401 Adams St. 

“I have something meaningful to say about us. We have something meaningful to say about us. Through our work as Black artists, we have an ongoing dialogue with the world and the conditions we exist in. The Light We Share is a visual conversation represented through shades of color on paper, canvas, and emulsion—mediums that have lit a fire within our souls,” a description of the exhibit authored by Dickerson says.

Dickerson has been taking photographs for several years. He took his artistic name “dirtykics” from a rap lyric by Cappa Donna because of its reference to the streets, which is where the photographer spends most of his time shooting his photographs.

“For Black History Month, the focus is on Black artists and the way that we communicate — our joys, our pains, our memories through art. For me art has always been the best way for me to communicate with folks because I’m naturally an introvert. Art became my communication,” said Dickerson, who has several collage pieces in the exhibit, in an interview.

Dickerson is proud of The Light We Share and the chance to work with other area artists on the exhibit.

“The exhibit is awesome. It’s not just photography, there’s works on paper, there’s paintings, there’s a story to tell on every wall and something new to embrace,” said Dickerson.

The three other artists featured in The Light We Share are Zalas Wulfgang, Cydnee Cotton, and Gee Horton.

Cotton has been a professional artist since the coronavirus pandemic.

“I do portrait painting, but they’re not realism,” said Cotton. “I use very bright colors, lots of bold lines. I paint mostly people of color but I like to make them more racially ambiguous by using all the color [in the paintings], but they're all portrait pieces, all very vibrant.”

Cotton’s works that will be on display at TSA consist of several portraits mostly of family and friends.

“Dirtykics put this show together and he’s so talented and I‘m so flattered to be a part of it,” said Cotton. “It’s all Black artists and I think that’s awesome, especially during the month of February for Black History Month, and to be put in a space like TSA, which has a really good reputation, that feels really great.”

Also in the exhibit is photographer Wulfgang, a Bowsher High School graduate, who is displaying 12 pieces of his artwork.

“This group of work is like a love letter to my father and to my sister, who is in a lot of pictures. My father passed away two years ago and I got custody of my sister [Izzy],” said Wulfgang.

Wulfgang has been taking pictures for around six years.

“I like taking portraits, and candid stuff. I hope that people feel something. It’s more than just looking at pictures. I’m always trying to have some feeling in my work and I’m happy to be up there will all those other great artists.”

First Published February 7, 2025, 12:30 p.m.