HELD
Black Women and The Womb
In her curatorial debut, Melissa Alexander is holding space for Black women and their wombs. Melissa is an Atlanta-based photographer creating work as a form of protest and rebellion to strengthen Black narratives that go overlooked and undervalued. She focuses on intimacy in the Black community, and is currently working on projects centering the evolution of the Black girl into the Black woman.
As someone who has faced her own womb health challenges, Melissa knows firsthand the physical and emotional toll that Black women carry with these experiences, and the importance of visibility and support–too often these experiences are dismissed and carried in silence. HELD: Black Women and The Womb is a curated group exhibition featuring 20 Black women artists whose work explores womb health conditions such as fibroids, endometriosis, PCOS, infertility, unwanted hysterectomies, and medical trauma. Through art, storytelling, and public programming, the exhibition creates community around experiences that too many women have carried alone.
With this exhibition, Melissa is creating something bigger than just a display of art on the walls. She is creating space for visibility, education, and connection. In fact, she met individually with each participating artist to hear our stories, ensuring she authentically connects us and our work to collectors and viewers. Aside from the show itself, she has a lineup of programming surrounding the show’s theme that will further foster conversations yielding more awareness and support for womb health.
When Melissa’s call for artists was shared with me, I didn’t hesitate to respond. Living with a womb-based condition means navigating between wanting to be seen and wondering if you ever truly will be. I have always been vocal about my endometriosis journey, and even still, the feeling that no one around me truly understands never fully goes away. But this exhibition felt aligned. With over 200 comments on Melissa’s artist call, it was clear that I wasn’t the only one who had been waiting for this specific space.
Upon delivering my artwork, I was able to have a sneak peek at a few of the other artists’ work, and I must say that Melissa has done an amazing job in her curation. I was in awe with what I was seeing, and hearing. The pieces in this show are not only beautiful to the eye, but also powerful to the soul. The stories of some of the work may even bring viewers to tears (so there’s that trigger warning). However, tears are also powerful and we may need this space and time to shed. Perhaps there will also be a bit of Renewal that occurs (which is the title of one of my pieces in this show). This is one of those exhibitions that will be uplifting and maybe even life changing for some.
Whether you are someone with womb challenges, or you know and love someone with womb challenges, you don’t want to miss this experience. The show officially opens at 7pm on Friday, May 8, 2026 at Nina Baldwin Gallery in Atlanta’s Castleberry Hill Arts District, with a soft opening, on May 7, 2026, specifically for collectors and healthcare professionals to engage and connect with the artists.
If you are unable to attend but would like to support the exhibition and its programming, please consider making a donation here.
RSVP for HELD: Black Women and The Womb
Friday, May 8, 2026
7pm–11pm
Nina Baldwin Gallery
309 Peters Street Southwest
Atlanta, GA 30313
