The OutMuseum is proud to celebrate Black History Month with its new exhibit Amalgamation: A Synthesis of Blackness, guest curated by Byron Scott Adams.

The moving image work of Amalgamation is divided into two sections: a short film collection and a music video collection. The driving idea behind the curation was to build and uplift projects created by Black queer filmmakers and artists, which together expand on how Black bodies have been perceived through these mediums. For so long we have seen trauma, we have seen aspects of joy, or the unrequited love stories of people who can't seem to make it work. In these collections, you'll find voices from emerging filmmakers and artists who are creating work that embodies the fullness of the Black experience, who are stepping into a new space, discovering new ways to tell stories, and reframing the past with beautiful textures. Additionally, in a new edition of our conversation series Taking Space, writers Charlie Peppers (Poker Face) and Makeda Declet (Just Makeda) share an open discussion on their experiences as Black queer creatives in the world of film, television, and the stage.

In this exhibition, Black queer stories don't just have to be about pain, anger, and death in order for people to care about Black queer lives. These films remind us that in being alive there is resilience, to have love is to hold power, and that each experience we have - good or bad - matters.