Celeta Hickman is a multifaceted artist whose creative expressions span the realms of dance, masquerade, beadwork, and Africana studies. With a deep passion for West African art, leadership, and art societies, she has danced professionally with prominent groups such as Nego Gato Capoeira Angola, Shades of Black Movement, and the Legacy Arts Project.

 

Renowned as a teaching artist in the nationally recognized Wolf Trap Program for Early Learning Through the Arts, Celeta educates children across southwestern Pennsylvania about Africana and Afro-Caribbean history, art, and dance traditions. Her dedication to arts education extends to her role at the August Wilson Center for African American Culture, where she serves as a distinguished arts educator.

 

Celeta's creativity also flourishes in design, with her New Village Daughter Papers stationery line receiving wide acclaim. She has held the honor of being the Afro-Caribbean dance instructor at the Hill Dance Academy for twelve years. Her dance prowess was recognized in 2015, when she was selected to perform in the critically acclaimed production "On Earth Together" by Ronald K. Brown/Evidence, A Dance Company.

 

Her cultural expertise led her to the Carnegie Museum of Art, where she worked as a cataloger and cultural historian for the Charles "Teenie" Harris Archive. Her visually stunning and evocative public performances have graced venues such as the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and Media, the Three Rivers Arts Festival First Night, Boom Concepts@the Carnegie Museum of Art, Montage, Penn State University, Contemporary Craft, Concept Galleries, and the North Shore.

 

Celeta is also the proud founder of the Ujamaa Collective in Pittsburgh, an initiative focused on wealth-building within the community.

 

In her latest venture, "A Black Bead Story: The Digital Spectacles," she combines her rich beadwork, choreography, and historical analysis to explore Africana woman's leadership aesthetics and Black performance masquerades. As the artistic director of this series of short films, Celeta continues to contribute to the chronicles of Africana experiences, shaping the past, present, and future with her artistic vision.