The Spotlight Award was created to highlight Spelman students making an impact in their communities through various mediums.
For The Spotlight Award: 25 for 25 Awardee Alexandra Nelson, exploring the diversity of artistry was destined. Yet, she did not always realize the path to her destiny was already written in the stars.
Originating from a legacy of Historically Black College and University (HBCU) graduates, attending the renowned Spelman College was a no-brainer. Nelson’s grandmother, a member of Spelman College’s class of 1970, and father, a Morehouse alumnus, were the blueprint for Nelson’s academic journey.
“I have always been inspired by HBCUs and guided throughout my life by family members who attended HBCUs,” Nelson enthusiastically reflects.
However, Nelson’s grandmother was not her only introduction to the institution. Nelson recalls attending Yoga Literature & Arts Camp, a two-week program hosted in the Spelman College Museum led by Peloton instructor and Spelman College alumna, Dr. Chelsea Jackson Roberts.
“We would practice yoga and learn about mental health. It was beautiful,” she shares.
In 2018, as a high school student, Nelson completed Spelman’s College Prep Institute summer program, where she had the pleasure of staying in the Beverly Daniel Tatum Suites.
“It was the first time I felt really authentic,” Nelson shares. These experiences led her to enroll in Spelman College amidst the chaos of the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests that headlined mainstream media.
While Nelson’s path to Spelman came without hesitation, her major in Art History and double minor in Spanish and Curatorial Studies did not. Her passion for art history did not register until attending an AUC Art Collective event, “Art on the Beltline,” which was a service project that taught the history of the Atlanta landmark. She found it fascinating, realizing curatorial studies is “about organizing and bringing people together to help understand a narrative”.
It was at that point that Nelson came to the realization that everything in her life was already pointing her toward this exploration of design.
“My grandparents’ house was my first museum,” says Nelson. Her grandfather collected antiques — furniture, canes and more — which became her childhood playground. This practice of utilizing collector’s items would be passed down to Nelson, as she soon realized that her very room was filled with relics.
In Nelson’s hometown, she remembers spending “almost every weekend at the Cincinnati Art Museum,” captivated by the exhibitions on display. Nelson believes she could have had this realization that curating would be her fate sooner if there was diversity in the storytelling of illustrators.
“Growing up I only learned about white artists,” she shares.
Destined to resolve this issue, in March of 2023, Nelson founded a non-profit organization, Black Kid Art (BKA) to “increase diversity in the arts through community outreach,” she explains.
The organization has successfully partnered with middle schools and YMCAs both in Cincinnati and Atlanta, sharing the history of Black artists and engaging in art activities to teach different mediums of design.
The intention of the program is to “educate youth for them to understand [that artistry] is a viable career option,” advice she wishes she heard in her adolescence.
Beyond Nelson’s work in advocacy, she has been an active seeker of opportunities to educate herself and maximize her impact at Spelman College. She has been involved in a plethora of campus organizations throughout her matriculation, including Spelman Ambassadors, Ethel Waddell Githii Honors Program, AUC Art Collective, and the Granddaughter’s Club, leaving an indelible mark.
Nelson is a WELs Scholar, Blue Record Live Founder, has studied abroad in Switzerland, and even orchestrated an exhibition at Emory University, yet she believes her biggest accomplishment is, “stepping into this current version of [her] most authentic self.”
Nelson’s commitment to her values has contributed immensely to her success at Spelman College. The Spotlight Award: 25 for 25 Awardee feels extremely “honored and grateful” to receive recognition for her success, which she often overlooks.
Nelson lives by an anecdote that she devotedly shares during her Spelman Ambassador tours — “If you are the exact person [that you were] when you [entered] college [as] when you leave, you did not do it right,” Nelson said.
And while it could be said that Nelson remains a young girl enthralled by her passion for artistry, the fostering of her commitment to service and leadership to dismantle the notion that art is monolithic encapsulates her growth.