As Black History Month marks its 100th year, Brooklyn Children's Museum presents Black Future Festival, a week-long celebration giving young people the tools and space to envision and shape the next century of Black creativity, resilience and innovation.
Taking place during NYC Schools' midwinter recess from Feb. 15 to Feb. 21, the festival features over a dozen workshops, performances, and hands-on experiences, ranging from Hip-Hop and House dance to Afrofuturistic art, vision boarding and printmaking.
“As Black History Month turns 100, we’re asking, ‘Who decides what the next 100 years looks like?’ BCM’s Black Future Festival gives kids the answer: they should and will,” said Atiba T. Edwards, President and CEO of Brooklyn Children’s Museum. “Black Future Festival gives young people and families the tools, the vision, and the support to imagine bold futures shaped by Black creativity and innovation. We're proud that BCM is the place where this work happens.”
Black Future Festival is presented together with guest curator Kendra J. Ross and STooPS Art & Community, an outdoor arts organization that builds community through art in Bed-Stuy, connecting Brooklynites through annual block parties, classes, and creative opportunities in unconventional spaces. Ross is the founder/ director of STooPS, whose work as a dancer and choreographer has been showcased around the world.
This year's Festival theme is Black Resilience: Growing in Tough Terrain. Through performances, workshops, and hands-on art-making led by guest artists and educators, the festival celebrates how the African diaspora has innovated and thrived in the face of adversity, and empowers young people and families to carry that creativity forward.
"At STooPS Art & Community, our mission has always been to build community by connecting people through art in the spaces they call home," said Ross. "Our goal is to provide a space where young people can see themselves as the architects of the next century, using their inherent creativity and resilience to shape a bold, innovative future.”
Schedule of Events:
Silver Linings: Triumph of Loss by KJB Works
Sun 2/15, Mon 2/16, Thu 2/19, Sat 2/21 at 3:30pm–4:15pm | Thu 2/19, Sat 2/21 at 11:00am–11:45am
Silver Linings: Triumph of Loss is a multidisciplinary dance piece that explores our perspectives of loss. The work examines how individual loss and societal loss can be reframed through healing and joyful celebration of what can be gained because of the loss.
Printing On Da Block
Mon 2/16, 12:15pm–1:00pm | Sat 2/21, 2:30pm–3:15pm
Bring your imagination to block printing! Use everyday materials to create a collective mural with participants, their families, and communities as the focal points. Kids will receive their own "blocks," roll paint onto them, and stamp images onto poster boards.
Afrofuturistic Collages
Wed, 2/18: 2:30pm - 3:15pm
Thu, 2/19: 12:15pm - 1:00pm
Learn about Afrofuturism through film, music, and imagery, then use mixed media to create your own Afrofuturistic face collage. Includes conversations about resilience, justice, and envisioning a brighter future.
Our Roots Run Deep: Kids' Vision Boards
Thu 2/19, 4:00pm–4:45pm | Fri 2/20, 12:15pm–1:00pm
Explore your dreams, strengths, and goals through art and guided reflection. Using the symbolism of trees and roots, participants will learn that growth is possible even in challenging environments—and that their roots in family, culture, and community help them stand strong. Children leave with a completed vision board, positive affirmations, and a deeper sense of confidence and possibility.
Yoga For Kids
Mon 2/16, 2:30pm–3:15pm | Tue 2/17, 4:00pm–4:45pm
Practice breathwork, meditation, stretching, and imaginative play through yoga adventures to the jungle, under the sea, and more.
Sparkle & Strength: Portraits Inspired by Mickalene Thomas
Wed 2/18 & Thu 2/19, 11:00am–12:15pm
Create expressive portraits inspired by Brooklyn artist Mickalene Thomas's bold, pattern-filled work. After a brief visual introduction, children use simple outlines, patterned papers, markers, and safe rhinestones to explore identity, color and confidence.
Printed Heroes
Thu 2/19, 2:30pm–3:15pm | Fri 2/20, 4:00pm–4:45pm
Celebrate Black History Month through printmaking and storytelling. Using custom stencils inspired by figures like Serena Williams and Bessie Coleman, kids will create colorful prints while learning about creativity, courage and imagination.
Art & Storytelling with Happy Island Books
Tue 2/17 & Wed 2/18, 2:30pm–3:15pm
Explore resilience through drawing, imagination, and shared stories. Simple creative prompts encourage children to express how they grow, adapt, and find joy, even when things feel challenging.
Let’s Dance Brooklyn: Past, Present, Future
Sun 2/15, 2:30pm–3:15pm | Wed 2/18, 4:00pm–4:45pm
Journey through Brooklyn's cultural dance roots, embrace the present, and envision a powerful future—all while having fun and staying active.
Hip Hop & House Dance Party
Tue 2/17 & Wed 2/18, 12:15pm–1:00pm
Learn party moves from Hip-Hop and House Dance through exercises including a soul train line, a cypher, and across-the-floor combinations. Participants will also learn a partner/group routine they’ll perform at the end of the session.
Making Brooklyn Beats
Sun 2/15 & Mon 2/16, 11:00am–11:45am
Explore sounds and create beats with world instruments like the mouth harp, mbira, shakere, xylophone, drums, and whistles. Make your own shaker to attach to your hands or feet and create your own percussion beat.
Memorable Art Journals
Sun 2/15 & Sat 2/21, 12:15pm–1:00pm
Decorate a small book made from a paper bag with embellishments, sparkles, stickers, and magazine cutouts. These art journals will tell your own story!
