The Man who revived African American Art in San Diego

Written by Margaret White, originally published in December 2021 print

As the Executive Director of the San Diego Museum of Fine Arts, Gaidi Finnie has worked hard to bring African American Art to San Diego. When the museum first opened in the late 1980s by Shirley Day Williams, Finnie was one of the original board members. However, upon Williams’ passing in 1996, the African American Museum of Fine Arts went stagnant for a while.

In 2014, the African American Museum of Fine Arts was able to host its first exhibit after 18 years of no activity. Gaidi Finnie was the force behind this renewed energy for the museum without walls. He saw the importance in sharing great African American art with San Diego. 

In July of this year, Gaidi Finnie unveiled the Say Their Names Memorial in the Martin Luther King Jr Promenade, right next to the New Children’s Museum downtown. The ribbon-cutting ceremony was filled with powerful and invoking speeches from community leaders like San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, Councilmember Monica Montgomery, and Assemblymember Dr. Akilah Weber.

The Say Their Names Memorial started as a grassroots project in Portland Oregon not too long after the death of George Floyd shook the hearts of America. The exhibit hosted recognizable faces like Emmett Till: a name I learned in history textbooks, usually next to the word lynch, a name I relearned in 2017 when Carolyn Bryant Donham revealed that she had lied about the incident leading up to Till’s death. Or Breonna Taylor: a name that lives on in the Louisville, Kentucky law banning no-knocks warrant after a change in warrant status was ignored by Louisville Police which ultimately lead to Taylor being shot and killed by police in her own home.

For every face I recognized at the exhibit, there were so many I’ve never seen or heard of. So many faces of people we lost because of systematic racism and the corrupt foundation of this nation.

Arts and politics have always been intertwined; whether it was arts protesting for political change or politics inspiring powerful art. The Say Their Name exhibits inspired all. The People’s Councilmember Monica Montgomery presented Giadi Finnie with a proclamation that stated “July 10 to the 25 to be Say Their Name weeks in the city of San Diego.”

There was something poetically ironic about hosting a memorial at the New Childrens’ Museum. There was something ironic in hearing the jovial giggles of young children while looking at 200 photographs of black people who have lost their lives due to racial injustices, police brutality, and racism— some of which were young enough to join the children in their fun. I’m sure Gaidi Finnie recognized the poetics when choosing the location. 

We want to thank Gaidi Finnie and the San Diego Museum of Fine Arts for bringing this and every other exhibit to us in San Diego.