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Toyin Ojih Odutola’s “Paris Apartment,” 2016-17
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“...they were just hanging out you know...talking about... (...when they grow up...),” 2016, Ebony G. Patterson
Music icons Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys are bringing to town an assemblage of more than 130 works by renowned Black artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. The traveling exhibition “Giants: Art From the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys” will showcase pieces from husband-and-wife Beatz’s (whose real name is Kasseem Dean) and Keys’ personal collection at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Nov. 22 through March 1, 2026.
The works are those of Black creatives from Africa, Europe, the United States and the Caribbean. The exhibition debuted at the Brooklyn Museum in 2024.
Coordinating the traveling exhibition at the VMFA is Valerie Cassel Oliver, also the curator of modern and contemporary art for the museum. She says the works of the nearly 40 artists featured in “Giants” celebrate Black culture and present critiques on racial inequality.
“In a moment when there is an attempt to suppress diverse narratives in art and culture, ‘Giants’ underscores the significance of artists to tell their stories, celebrate life, build upon our creative vitality and resist erasure,” Oliver says.
“Giants” is part of the VMFA’s long-term commitment to feature more works by artists of color, an effort that includes pieces moving to an extensive expansion slated to open in 2028. The new wing is projected to make the museum the second-largest space for African art in the U.S.
Dean, Keys and Kimberli Gant (an organizer of the exhibition and curator of modern and contemporary art at the Brooklyn Museum) envisioned “Giants” as a recognition of the mammoth cultural contributions by Black creatives, such as American photojournalist Gordon Parks and South African painter Esther Mahlangu, along with up-and-coming artists influenced by the greats. The exhibition echoes Dean’s and Keys’ own metamorphoses from emerging artists to Grammy winners and their belief that it’s possible for anyone to become a giant.
“We need to be our most giant selves: to think our most giant thoughts, express ourselves in the biggest way possible and give ourselves permission to be giants,” Keys said in a statement.
The refrain of the giant within us is something that all Virginians can relate to, regardless of race, Oliver says, adding, “Everyone sees the impact of what it means to be mentored and nourished by people of varying generations — the older community learning from the younger and vice versa.”
Additionally, during the run of “Giants,” VMFA will present art from its 21st-century collection, which highlights artists who are also featured in the traveling exhibition. Many of the selected pieces had been temporarily placed in storage due to expansion work at the museum. Oliver notes that though the artists’ names may be familiar, their body of work can vary widely between what’s highlighted within “Giants” and the VMFA’s permanent collection. Dynamic artist Arthur Jafa’s large-scale sculpture “Big Wheel 1” is displayed in the exhibition, while a film installation by Jafa will be featured at the museum in December.
All of the showcased pieces ascend in both size and intention. Works by Derrick Adams, Kwame Brathwaite, Deborah Roberts, Amy Sherald, Kehinde Wiley and many more speak to the theme and are a representation of the distinctiveness, connection and resilience of communities around the world — in other words, giants.
“Giants: Art From the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys” is on display at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Nov. 22 through March 1, 2026. Tickets are $8 to $12.
