In the tapestry of existence, body and soul are interwoven threads. Alexandria discovers body gratitude through a harrowing medical journey; with her grandmother’s guidance, Shirley reconciles with the passing of a family friend; and Milos harmonizes a birth injury with the redemptive melodies of his clarinet. Three storytellers, three poignant reflections on BODY AND SOUL, hosted by Wes Hazard. 05/13/2024 GBH Studios | Rating TV-PG | 26m 14scVideo has Closed Captions | CC

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On Mondy, November 11, 2023 opened the doors of her home studio for an art exhibition – taking us on a brief tour of her complex and diverse hodgepodge and artistic expression through oil, etching, mixed media, entwined with African American Culture, health, recycling, and education. at Historian, medical doctor and artist. Dr. Whitaker reflects on the history of Black Americans. From women washing the blood-stained white robes of the KKK to the meaning of water to the ascent of the first Black president. Whitaker looks at American history and reports back with gut-wrenching honesty that tears at the heart as well as igniting hope.

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On Friday, April 28, 2023 at the Mill District Local Art Gallery, Quarterly Opening reception, Dr. Shirley Whitaker spoke about the importance of voting, and how she addresses voter suppression with her latest projects; Tote2Vote – with basic nourishment needed to sustain long wait periods, education on how to overcome draconian restrictions, and issues with transportation that complicate, weaponize, and often make it impossible to exercise one's right to vote.

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Tuesday, April 25, 2023, Amherst College was host to Ashes to Ashes: Pride & Pain on a Canvas featuring Dr. Shirley Whitaker – A talk and film screening of Ashes to Ashes, an award-winning film. Following the screening Dr. Whittaker performs an original soul-wrenching spiritual (They Lynched My Child This Morning) with actor Braheem Wahid that acknowledges and mourns the African Americans who were racially terrorized during the Jim Crow era after the Civil War and until this very day. Dr. Shirley Whitaker's work examines the fraught journey of healing beyond white supremacy through her collaborations with Winfred Rembert – posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his memoir on racism and incarceration, Chasing Me to My Grave: An Artist’s Memoir of the Jim Crow South (2021), co-authored with Erin I. Kelly. Ashes to Ashes showcases Dr. Whittaker and Rembert’s journey and paints a powerful portrait of agency, grief, and freedom in American culture and life.

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On Thursday, March 24th, 2022, we hosted a virtual panel discussion to celebrate the run of Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker's profound exhibit, "An Artist's Reflection on African American Life, Culture, and Trials."

Virtual Panelists:
Michael Kuch, Printer, Proprietor of Double Elephant Press, Dr. Barbara Krauthamer, Dean of the College of Humanities and Fine Arts and Professor of History University of Massachusetts Amherst, Dr. John Buchtel, Curator of Rare Books and Head of Special Collections Boston Athenaeum, Meredith Santaus, Gallery Manager at Bromer Booksellers & Gallery.

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Shirley Jackson Whitaker: An Artist’s Reflection on African-American Life, Culture, and Trials offers prints, sketches, paintings, and books that envision Black history as American history with power, joy, and grief. Lean more Bromer Booksellers & Gallery

Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker leads asks the participants to join her while she sings a song the slaves use to sing to cope with the pain and torture.

Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker receives the 2018 MLK Social Justice Award for Health Disparities

Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker took it upon herself to mourn all the African Americans who were lynched in the United States with a homegoing that she has presented twice so far, most recently at St. John’s Congregational Church in Springfield.

Marcie Sclove visits Shirley Whitaker in her home and gives us a look at some of Shirley's art.

Marcie Sclove interviews Dr. Shirley Whitaker, a kidney specialist, artist and community activist.

Marcie Sclove interviews Dr. Shirley Whitaker, a kidney specialist, artist and community activist.