By Kevin Lee Associate Editor

Rejuvenation is popping up all over and inspiring those beyond the tonier sections of recent renown.

A group of intrepid souls will host the first Davis Avenue Arts Festival, subtitled “A Celebration of Life,” on Saturday, June 9 in a northern sector of downtown just west of the De Tonti Square district. The day-long affair features a variety of arts and hopes to breathe new life into the historically black quarter of Mobile.

Festival organizer Julius Avery is no stranger to downtown endeavors. Avery once owned the M…Club Art Gallery at the corner of Government and Royal streets, a spot now occupied by the Royal Scam. The Birmingham native arrived in Mobile thanks to a job as a chemist for Courtaulds and eventually found side work designing T-shirts for the manufacturing giant.

Avery plunged deeper into the arts, learning to frame and then opening the gallery at the foot of Government Street. “I love chemistry,” Avery said, “but I love art more. I like to see the way it makes people feel.”

The gallery experienced moderate success. “We did okay,” Avery recalled, “but it wasn’t what we hoped.” He devised a new plan.

Avery began selling wares at the Mobile Flea Market on Schillinger Road to greater success. “We’re doing better out there than we ever did downtown,” he said. “After a while I realized we didn’t need the building to make money.”

Though the physical premises disappeared, the M…Club mission remained in Avery’s head. Splitting time between the Magic City and the Azalea City, he learned of Davis Avenue’s historic status in Mobile’s black community, of its role as the hub of African-American commerce and culture in the long decades before desegregation. He also lamented its slow disintegration and decided to take hold of matters for himself.

Avery convened with various cultural players from the black community and forged the idea for the arts festival.

According to the former chemist, the inaugural event will comprise a variety of disciplines. “We’ve got everything you need for an all day event,” Avery said. “There’s visual arts with a local art contest and artist reception, spoken word with two poetry recital sessions, historic tours, gospel music from Birmingham’s Silver Voices choir, all kinds of stuff.”

The gustatory passions are also present via Chef Henry Douglas from Bishop State Junior College.

The event’s epicenter is the Dearborn Street YMCA and walking historic tours of surrounding buildings, including Pure Heart of Mary Church, Stone Street Baptist Church and the African-American Archives, will stem from the Dearborn Street locale.

The festival runs from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. and is free.

Avery credits the Mobile Arts Council and Main Street Mobile as particularly helpful in the event.

The spoken word portion of the festival features some area heavyweights and at least one switch-hitter. Zondra McMillion, a cog in past Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Festivals, teams with Geneo Williams and Cheryl Jones-Denson, organizers of spoken word events at area libraries, to bring their prose talents to bear.

Joining them will be Mobile’s multi-talented Theola Bright, who will not only read her poetry but will also sing gospel that day.

A former host of WHIL-FM’s “The Jazz Collection,” Bright has been busy since a format change at the station dispensed of her show. She has taken to the Web with radio shows on three Internet sites and spoken word appearances at local coffee shops.

Bright has also ventured into the film arena. “I did a song for a soundtrack to a movie called ‘The System Within,’” she said, “sort of a bluesy song called ‘Cold, Cold World.’” Bright describes the film as an exploration of discrimination within the prison system, of drug crimes and incarceration and self-perpetuating cycles. She said the film can be previewed at thesystemwithin.com.

As for her spoken word, Bright is enthusiastic about her latest release. The poet who was once commissioned to write a poem for Dizzy Gillespie’s 70th birthday celebration in Miami and has shared a stage with the likes of Dick Gregory, Shirley Chisholm and former editor-in-chief for Essence Magazine Susan Taylor will have copies of her third book available. The volume, “Just Thinking,” seems to be her most personal to date. “It’s about stuff we all think about but won’t talk about,” Bright said. “Things like depression and intimate sadness.”

Her poetry begins at 4 p.m. at the Dearborn Street YMCA.

A fitting rebirth for a day of renaissance.

Kevin Lee is Lagniappe associate editor. Contact him at klee@lagniappemobile.com.

Archives