Bringing humanity to the forefront of a divided World…
by empowering young leaders to recognize, examine and disrupt systems of division.
We engage the public through public speaking, art exhibitions and audiovisual content exploring media literacy, historical context and personal alignment as it relates to “the industry of division.” Our goal is to collaborate with our audience to explore our personal accountability in perpetuating division in our interpersonal relationships and larger community.
Our messaging and practice pulls from the philosophy created by artist and pluralist, Genesis Be. The statement “People Not Things” is a world centric ethos that prioritizes the human spirit as opposed to divisive labels and dehumanization. We believe that every person is a complex human being worthy of dignity, first and foremost. We seek to identify the barriers that prevent us from inner alignment and barriers that keep us from connecting with our fellow humans.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PHILOSOPHY AND PRACTICE OF PEOPLE NOT THINGS
WHY ART EXHIBITS?
The concept of People Not Things was developed through a series of solo exhibitions by art advocate, Genesis Be. It has since evolved into a broadening showcase of diverse voices and narratives. In 2024, we curated and co-produced the Freedom Rising Exhibit featuring currently incarcerated artists with the goal of engaging the public in dialogue around mass incarceration. In August 2025, we will partner with Callanwalde Fine Arts Gallery in Atlanta to showcase emerging black women artists to amplify deserving voices historically suppressed in fine art spaces.
The creative mind is one of innovation and artists have a unique ability to capture nuances of existence that, when shared, can shift public perception and contribute to movement building and communal healing through conversation. We believe that the true power of art is the ability to bring people together across divides, to expose new solutions and realities to complacent populations, to disrupt modes of division by appealing to our natural human inclination of wonder, empathy, imagination, curiosity and connection
PEOPLE NOT THINGS ON CAMPUS
Our proudest work involves engaging young leaders across America to discuss the division we are witnessing online and in our communities. They help us develop our ever changing philosophy by expressing their challenges, solutions and hopes for an inheritable tomorrow. We explore topics such as productive dialogue, media literacy, mental health and how to enact positive change in our immediate surroundings.
Recently, we’ve partnered with Moral Courage for a college tour where we use curriculum and training on how to have productive dialogue about polarizing issues. Partners include Emory University, Penn State, Westminster, Western Michigan, uMass and Pace Univ. Law School.
Freedom Rising Art Exhibition
Recently, we produced and curated The Freedom Rising Art Exhibition. This unique exhibit featured 20 original works by incarcerated artists currently being held at the Georgia Department of Corrections. We aim to challenge our audience's concept of freedom by highlighting the imagination, dreams, memories, life experiences, and talents of artists who do not have their freedom. There is a need to reevaluate our collective morality around the American prison system. Who do we deem worthy of freedom? Who do we believe is deserving of confinement and isolation? By humanizing the carceral issue through art, we can begin to analyze the way criminalization and dehumanization allow the general public to grant permission to reduce humans to "criminals" and remove them from our society and collective consciousness. People Not Things, forever.
Featured Artists: Bobby A, Antowon R, Henry C, Juan M, Kevin D, Seth B, David W, D Garcia, and Robert S.
Produced and curated by Genesis Be, Freedom Rising, in collaboration with HeartBound Ministries and Brooklyn Art Haus. Sponsored by Focus For Health.
UPCOMING EVENTS
In August 2025, we will partner with Callanwalde Fine Arts Gallery in Atlanta to showcase emerging black women artists to amplify deserving voices historically suppressed in fine art spaces.
EXPLORE ORIGINAL ART & POETRY FROM GENESIS BE
Artist Statement
"My art liberates the ego from the prison of identity. I paint barriers to help me visualize the ideological and societal blocks that keep me from connecting with my fellow humans, with nature, with myself. My goal is to deprogram myself from The Industry of Division, my art only documents this process. My work challenges divisive labels and confronts the barriers that perpetuate human disconnection and disrupt discourse. Through my art, I’m on a quest to heal myself from the disease of division, in hopes that this radiates to my audience.
People Not Things forever and ever."
- Genesis Be
The Amorous Tribe
The Lonely Collective
The Watchers
White Barriers
Black Barriers
Leap Of Faith
People Not Things: Love Poems for Humanity
Poignant and moving, this debut collection of poetry and paintings from Genesis Be bravely examines what it means to stay hopeful on the arduous journey to freedom. Drawing on her activism and antiracist work as covered by the New York Times and VICE, Be examines tools of division and challenges our notion of freedom. Equal parts delicate and unapologetic, People Not Things is a powerful debut that will speak to the hearts of readers from all walks of life.
