DeJeonge Reese (she/her) is a visual artist, educator, and art advocate from Yeadon, Pennsylvania. She received her Bachelor's degree in Visual Arts from The Lincoln University of Pennsylvania and her master's degree in studio art from Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia, PA. With a background in ceramics; DeJeonge used her time at Moore to explore other mediums such as installation, mixed media, and performance art.
​
She uses her art and creativity to stimulate new and ongoing conversations on the various facets of identity, lineage, roots, and ancestry within the black community; highlighting these intersections through her passion for experimenting with a variety of mediums and materials; primarily through hair.
​
DeJeonge's work has been showcased in various group exhibitions including Narrative Tactility, RushArts, Phila, PA, Hairitage, Dekalb Gallery, Brooklyn NY, and (re)FOCUS at City Hall, Phila, PA
She has been awarded a fellowship for Black artists from Mural Art Philadelphia and has attended residencies at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Tennessee and Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.
Her work is currently on display in terminal A-West at the Philadelphia Airport. It can be seen by ticketed passengers from January 2025 to June 2025.
Artist Statement:
My inspiration is drawn from my identity as a Black woman, especially regarding the past and present discourses surrounding Black hair and beauty expectations. When I started to re-identify myself through my natural hair, I became impacted enough to explore these themes and ideas through my art. Throughout history and across cultures, hair is not just a style choice. It is a visual sign system that conveys information about an individual’s age, gender, ethnicity, and even racial identity politics. The conversation around black hair is especially fraught. Even within the community of black women, there is division behind one’s choice to straighten, braid, weave, wear wigs, or simply leave it be. I mine these themes through mediums such as mixed media sculpture, installations, and performances. Therefore; contributing to ongoing conversations on cultural identity as an African American