Opening Reception

Join NorthStar Church of the Arts for the opening reception of gleamin’: And none is barren among them, a solo exhibition by Durham-based Black Seminole performance maker and installationist Majesty Royale-Jackson. The exhibition marks the third and final presentation in NorthStar's 2026 Spotlight Exhibition Series.

Combining sculptural forms, a layered sonic landscape, and video projection, gleamin’ explores transformation as a technology of survival and self-determination for Black and Indigenous people in the U.S. Southeast.

At the center of the installation, Majesty transforms tobacco leaves into flamboyant grillz, bringing tobacco's sacred significance to Black and Indigenous peoples of the Americas into tension with its history as a commodity within colonial economies, particularly in North Carolina. Southern hip-hop collides with distorted tobacco oral histories and excerpts from dental manuals, while a video projection depicts a mouth lip-syncing as golden light emanates from within.

Through creative misuse of materials, gleamin’ considers how Black and Indigenous people transform the conditions of coloniality into expressions of autonomy, adornment, and possibility.

The opening reception invites visitors to experience the installation and celebrate the opening of Majesty's solo exhibition.

Free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. RSVPs encouraged.

gleamin’: And none is barren among them is on view November 13–22, 2026, with additional gallery hours and public programming throughout the exhibition.