Spring is here, and with it comes new movement, new rhythm, and new spaces to gather. As the season of rebirth unfolds, we’re thrilled to welcome This Heavenly Body, a multimedia exhibition that glides through the history of roller rinks as sacred Black and Brown cultural havens in the U.S. Midwest — where music, movement, and community have always found their flow.

"This Heavenly Body” is a multimedia exhibition by Chicago-based artist Seed Lynn, opening April 5th, 2025 at Norwest Gallery in Detroit through May 31, 2025. Organized by independent curator, cultural strategist, and archivist Ashara Ekundayo, the exhibition meditates on space, movement, and the choreography of Black joy through roller skating and rink culture—an enduring and essential element of Black American life.

Through film, photography, and installation, the exhibition explores the significance of roller rinks as cultural and communal havens in the U.S. Midwest. At its core, the exhibition serves as a political response to the increasing closures of these sacred spaces of Black leisure and social connection across the country. Additionally, Lynn’s creative use of long-exposure photography highlights the Black skaters in natural light providing an ethereal quality making the figures appear “heavenly.”

To complement the exhibition, a series of public programs featured below will explore the intersections of Black movement, performance, and social space.