Written by Al Currie Jr - March 31, 2022
Captured by Zay J. (@treesintheville)
“Dreamville”. “Fayette-nam”, “The 2-6”. All of these nicknames may be familiar to you if you know who J Cole, the GOAT, is. BUT, if you don’t know who that is in the slightest then maybe you’ll know where Dennis Smith Jr is from. Fayetteville, the home of a “dollar and a dream”. The city of hard knocks, go getters, straight out the mud hustlers. This is beyond no exception when it comes to Art.
From artists, like J Cole, to Morray, to “that dude from Atlanta” (Brian Tyree Henry). These artists have proven to be immensely talented, so much so they’ve catapulted themselves from a small city to sharing their art on a global stage and @cothephotographer is no different.
Courtney Cheatham is a photographer in Fayetteville, North Carolina. I was made aware of her work through Instagram. When I first saw her page, I was blown away. The vulnerability within her subjects was breath taking. I felt like her subjects weren’t looking through a lens but at the viewer themselves. Her art was captivating and had me in disbelief that this was only through Instagram, a social platform that diminishes art down to a system of likes and emojis. Nevertheless, her art has spread far and wide attracting the eyes of model & actress, Ebonee Davis. Which lead to the two of them working together on a new piece, which is apart of Courtney’s recent exhibit, “Raised by Angels”.
Captured by Courtney Cheatham (@cothephotographer), modeled by Ebonee Davis (@eboneedavis)
“Raised by Angels”, is a collection of photos described as “Black Women in their angelic light“ and strives to showcase “their strength, guardianship, and grace.” The exhibit was held by the Fayetteville Arts Council and was shown from the 11-16 of March. I had the pleasure of seeing this art in person and was amazed. The collection had 6-7 pieces with a mixture of B&W images to Color, all shot on film. The images captured the beauty of black women and seeing what mimicked a real life angel.
Hosted by the Fayetteville Arts Council.
I know you may be wondering, “okay, but why should I care?”. My reply is that you don’t have to, but you should be able to appreciate and have an opinion on art. While Courtney’s work is impeccable, the real reason you should care (especially if you’re from Fayetteville) is that she represents something we rarely see. “Co” Cheatham is a BLACK WOMAN creating the belief that you can be a successful artist. She has proven that you can use your skill to create art and have it affect others in an immense way. While being from a small city like Fayetteville you rarely see people make it out the city but Courtney is showcasing that you can have success in the city itself.
If you can, I urge you to check out her work via instagram. It’s amazing and you’ll be glad you did.