Indigo Arts Alliance Launches the Beautiful Blackbird Children's Book Festival

Indigo Arts Alliance, a community arts organization for artists of African descent, hosts its first annual children’s book festival—in homes. 

Indigo Arts Alliance, an organization committed to cultivating the artistic development of artists of African descent, launches the Beautiful Blackbird Children’s Book Festival— in homes across the state. The event was created to honor legendary children’s author and illustrator Ashley Bryan whose award-winning picture book Beautiful Blackbird is a celebration of Blackness. Indigo, in partnership with I’m Your Neighbor Books and the Diverse BookFinder, will use the festival to celebrate children’s books and their creators from across the African diaspora. 

Unable to engage with readers in person, the Beautiful Blackbird Children’s Book Festival is bringing the festival to homes by providing book read alouds, creator interviews, dance instruction, art projects, and more by video over a nine- week period this summer on BeautifulBlackbird.com. 750 children served by Portland Housing Authority and Portland Parks & Recreation will get books and activities delivered directly to them ensuring book access and engagement at home during the summer months. As one of the festival partners, the Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine will help spread the festival materials digitally to children and families throughout Maine.

“The Beautiful Blackbird Children’s Book Festival is one of several Indigo programs that brings real, actionable change to the Maine’s arts and culture sector. It is our commitment to raise readers who see themselves reflected in the literature they consume and to cultivate artists who understand the necessity of that representation,” said Marcia Minter, Indigo’s co-founder. 

This year’s featured picture books and creators include Ashley Bryan, the author and illustrator of Beautiful Blackbird; Daniel Minter, the illustrator of Going Down Home with Daddy; Francie Latour. the author of Auntie Luce’s Talking Paint- ings; Lesa Cline-Ransome and James E. Ransome, the creators of Overground Railroad; Kelly Starling Lyons, the author of Sing a Song; Munir D. Mohammed, the illustrator of Wherever I Go; and Samara Cole Doyon, the author of Magnificent Homespun Brown. The festival also features Omar Mohamed, the co-creator of the graphic novel When Stars are Scat- tered. These books represent the modern and historical African American experience, but also the experience of recent immigrants from Ethiopia, Somalia, and Haiti. 

“We are proud to have retooled and redesigned this festival so we could bring it directly to families and children,” said Indigo co-founder Marcia Minter. “It honors diversity, respects all cultures and builds a strong sense of community for all of us. We’re looking forward to seeing how it grows!” 

ABOUT INDIGO ARTS ALLIANCE: Indigo Arts Alliance’s purpose is to build global connections by bringing together artists from diverse backgrounds of the African Diaspora to engage in their creative process with an opportunity to serve as both mentors and mentees. An integral aspect of the Indigo vision is to provide Maine based artists of African descent access to a broader range of practicing Black artists and artists of color from around the world. To learn more, go to indigoartsalliance.me.