NBAF to honor Designer James Keith and Photographer Marilyn Nance at its 18th annual Fine Art + Fashion benefit at the Atlanta History Center

NBAF is excited to honor renowned designer James Keith and celebrated photographer Marilyn Nance at its annual benefit fundraiser, Fine Art + Fashion, which will take place Wednesday, March 27th, from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm at the Atlanta History Center.

Presented in partnership with Neiman Marcus, Fine Art + Fashion brings together lovers of art & fashion with award-winning artists in Visual Arts and Fashion Design. Attendees enjoy dinner and drinks, an impeccably curated fashion show, award presentations, and are introduced to the winning student designers of the annual Fashion Forward Student Design Competition and the inaugural NextGen Visionary Artist Competition.

NBAF’s Fine Art & Fashion Designer Honoree, James Keith, is one of the most recognizable brands in the luxury accessories industry. The Keith James brand has become a favorite of celebrities and public figures from Floyd Mayweather to Beyonce. Known as the “Gentlemen Milliner”, James Keith placed his family name ahead of his own for the brand, demonstrating the importance of his family values. Born and raised in the small town of Riegelwood, North Carolina, hats were a part of James’ life for as far back as he can remember. Tradition stated that a gentleman never left home without a finely crafted fedora, and on Sundays, women embraced their individuality by donning elaborately adorned hats.

The 2024 Fine Art + Fashion honoree in Visual Arts is photographer Marilyn Nance. She is the inaugural recipient of the Radcliffe Bailey Award for Excellence in Visual Art. Sponsored by Vicki and John Palmer, the awardee was selected by a committee of esteemed Visual Arts judges, led by High Museum’s Fred and Rita Richman Curator of African Art, Lauren Tate Baeza.

Marilyn Nance has produced images of unique moments in the cultural history of the US and the African Diaspora. While serving as the photographer for the US delegation of FESTAC ’77, also known as the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, Nance made one of the most comprehensive photographic accounts of this landmark Pan-African festival of arts and culture. Marilyn Nance: Last Day in Lagos, published in 2022, is a focused study of Nance through an archival encounter with her documentation of FESTAC. Nance is a two-time finalist for the W. Eugene Smith Award in Humanistic Photography. Her work is in the collections of the Brooklyn Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the Library of Congress, and has been published in The World History of Photography, History of Women in Photography and The Black Photographers Annual. She lives and works in New York.

Both awards will be presented live at this year’s Fine Art + Fashion event.

“NBAF proudly honors trailblazers and visionary leaders in the arts and we are excited to continue the tradition this year at the 2024 Fine Art & Fashion event. We are grateful to have the opportunity to pay tribute to our friend Radcliffe Bailey by renaming the Visual Arts Award in his honor and we are excited to highlight Marilyn Nance’s work as the recipient of this award while also celebrating the work of designer James Keith, and showcasing the work of very talented student artists at this benefit. NBAF is privileged to have the opportunity to support all of this amazing talent and celebrate their achievements and success in their respective fields,” says NBAF Executive Director, Stephanie Owens.

Fine Art + Fashion raises funds to support NBAF’s operations and programs for artists of all ages and disciplines, particularly youth arts education programs for underserved students of African descent.

NBAF will also award the 2024 Fashion Forward Student Design Competition and NextGen Visionary Competition winners at Fine Art + Fashion. The Fashion Forward Student Design Competition supports college-level student designers enrolled in an accredited fashion design program with a cash prize of $1,500, and showcasing their winning design at NBAF’s Fine Art + Fashion Benefit, and in Neiman Marcus Atlanta. The NextGen Visionary Artist Competition awards a high school student visual artist with a cash prize of $250, their work on display, and an award presentation at the event.

NBAF’s Fine Art + Fashion is supported by many generous donors including the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, Neiman Marcus, Georgia Pacific, and many more, in addition to media sponsors The Atlantan, Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta, and WABE. For more information or reservations, please visit: nbaf.org/fine-art-fashion. For interview requests, please email press@nbaf.org.