In collaboration with the Franco Family Institute for Liberal Arts and the Public Good and the Initiative on Race and Resilience, the Creative Writing Series invites you to a conversation with Irvin Weathersby Jr. and DeJeonge Reese. Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore staff will be on site with copies of In Open Contempt: Confronting White Supremacy in Art and Public Space available for purchase.
Irvin Weathersby Jr. is a Brooklyn-based writer and professor from New Orleans. His writing has been featured in LitHub, Guernica, Esquire, The Atlantic, EBONY, and elsewhere. He has earned an MFA from The New School, an MA from Morgan State University, and a BA from Morehouse College. He has received fellowships and awards from the Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation, the Research Foundation of CUNY, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the Mellon Foundation.
DeJeonge Reese (she/her) is a visual artist and educator from Yeadon, Pennsylvania. She holds degrees from The Lincoln University of Pennsylvania and Moore College of Art and Design. Working across mixed media, textile and fiber art, and performance, DeJeonge explores the rich cultural, spiritual, and social narratives embedded in Black hair and culture. Drawing from her personal natural hair journey, ancestry, and historical research, she approaches Black hair as a living vessel of history, memory, and identity—using material experimentation and storytelling to bridge past and present. Her work challenges dominant perceptions while celebrating resilience, pride, and the enduring legacy of Black identity. DeJeonge’s work has been exhibited throughout Philadelphia and New York, including at the Philadelphia International Airport. She is a 2023 recipient of the Mural Arts Philadelphia Black Artist Fellowship and has participated in several prestigious artist residencies.