The New Orleans African American Museum (NOAAM) has acquired A Seat at My Table, an interactive art piece by Ashli Ognelodh Curry.

This powerful work stands as a testament to legacy, faith, and the spiritual inheritance that shapes our identity.

The piece is more than an artwork—it is a response to the idea that greatness depends on being granted a place. Through this work, Ashli proclaims: your seat isn’t tied to someone else’s table; your greatness has been spoken and secured by those who came before you. The affirmations, the prayers, the coverings—they are the foundation of your identity.

 

With this acquisition, NOAAM further deepens its commitment to preserving voices that elevate, uplift, and reflect the profound experiences of Black artists. A Seat at My Table joins their collection not just as an aesthetic addition, but as a spiritual and cultural anchor—opening new pathways for reflection, recognition, and community connection.

We invite you to come experience it in person, to sit with the legacy, and to carry forward the truth that your place is already prepared.

 The prayers embedded in this piece echo as affirmations: they are coverings of faith, whispers of protection, and declarations of resilience passed through generations.

 

A Seat at My Table invites viewers to experience the embrace of those ancestral prayers, to rest in the knowledge that their place is already prepared, and to carry forward the assurance that their greatness has always been spoken into being.