SAVE THE DATES: 11/18- 12/8- BEYOND THE BRIM
Welcome to "Under the Brim"
Why the Brim?
The brim is a boundary. A filter. A choice.
It allows us to show the world what we want them to see while keeping sacred the parts of us that are still healing, still unfolding, still ours. The brim protects, but it also empowers. It gives us room to move through the world on our own terms.
For many Black women, hats have long been a symbol of elegance, strength, faith, and resilience. They've been worn to church, to celebrations, to make a statement, and to survive a storm. A hat can transform how we feel — taller, bolder, softer, safer. But even without a hat, we carry an invisible brim: the expectations, assumptions, and judgments placed on us before anyone knows our full story.
This collection is about what lives beneath that brim — the real, the raw, the layered truth. It's a reminder that there is always more to us than what meets the eye.
Because every woman has a story.
And before you see the whole woman,
you only see the brim.
— Denise “NiSi” Lee
The hat is what the world sees.
Under the Brim is what we carry.
UNDER THE BRIM
Artist Statement
Long before I knew this collection existed, it was already being written.
As a little girl, hats were woven into my world. I wore them. My mother and sister wore them. The women in church wore them with elegance, reverence, and pride. Years later, my first professional acting role after college was in Crowns, a play that celebrates the tradition and symbolism of Black women and their hats. Looking back, I realize those experiences were quietly preparing me for this body of work long before I ever picked up a brush.
Representation shaped me just as deeply. My mother recorded Black films and television, filling our home with the presence of women like Diahann Carroll, Phylicia Rashad, Lena Horne, and Diana Ross. They carried themselves with beauty, strength, complexity, and grace. Those women became part of my visual memory, and as I painted this collection, I found echoes of them alongside the women in my own family.
Under the Brim began to reveal itself while I was creating a portrait as a birthday gift for my best friend. Around the same time, I was presented with the opportunity to create my first solo exhibition. As I continued painting, an unfinished portrait I had started nearly a year earlier, Becoming, found its place within the collection. What I thought would be a series of portraits became something much deeper.
This work asks a simple question:
What do people see?
And another that often takes a lifetime to answer:
What do we carry beneath the brim?
These portraits explore the quiet spaces between appearance and reality—the stories we protect, the roles we perform, the traditions we inherit, and the identities we continue to discover. They are reflections of legacy, resilience, joy, grief, healing, and becoming.
As I painted, I found myself thinking about my grandmothers, my mother, my sister, and the invisible threads connecting us across generations. Some lessons were intentionally passed down through love and wisdom. Others arrived quietly through survival, expectation, and silence. Together, they became part of my own story.
Although these paintings are deeply personal, they were never meant to end with me.
My hope is that every person who encounters this collection pauses long enough to consider their own story. Through the portraits, the poems, the mirror, and the hatbox, I invite you to reflect on what the world sees, what you carry, and the parts of yourself that may still be becoming.
Perhaps you'll recognize someone you love.
Perhaps you'll recognize yourself.
— Denise 'NiSi' Lee
BEGIN THE JOURNEY
THE COLLECTION
Ten portraits. Ten stories. Revealed October 2026.
Press the painting, download my words.
"She learned how to begin again without calling herself broken."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Still, She Smiled.
"I don't need her to make me fearless. I need her to remind me to keep going."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for The Girl I Carry.
"Home is not only where I came from. It is something I learned how to become for other people."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for The Mil.
"She kept us in ways we are still discovering. And now, we keep her."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for The Keeper
"I did not inherit her eyes, but I inherited something from the woman behind them."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Her Eyes.
"Some things can be pressed smooth. Some things leave a crease."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Sophisticated Lady.
"You do not have to be finished to be worthy of being seen."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Becoming.
"I did not find my voice just to lower it for someone else's comfort."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Self-ish.
"Being noticed is not the same as being known."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Pretty Armor.
"Beneath one brim- even when there is no brim at all."
Press the painting to LISTEN to original poetry for Bare.
Please note: Shipping and handling are not included in the purchase price and will be calculated separately based on destination.
THE EXPERIENCE
"An exhibition isn't complete until someone sees themselves in it."
THE MIRROR
Where Being Seen Becomes ART
One of the final stops in Under the Brim invites visitors to become part of the exhibition.
Standing before the mirror, guests are asked to complete one sentence:
Before they know my story…
They see ____________________.
What begins as a reflection becomes a conversation about perception, identity, and the assumptions we make about one another.
The mirror reminds us that every face carries a story that cannot be seen at first glance.
THE HATBOX
Beneath the Brim
Near The Keeper sits a vintage hatbox.
Inside are hundreds of anonymous stories.
Visitors are invited to answer one question:
I carry ____________________.
Some write a word.
Others write a paragraph.
Some fold the paper carefully before placing it inside.
Each response becomes part of the exhibition—a quiet reminder that we are often carrying far more than anyone realizes.
INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE
Under the Brim is more than an exhibition of portraits.
It is an invitation.
Throughout the gallery, visitors are encouraged to:
~Listen to original poems written for each painting.
~Experience the artwork through audio.
~Reflect at the mirror.
~Contribute to the hatbox.
~Continue the journey online after leaving the gallery.
The experience doesn't end when you leave the room.
It continues wherever you carry it.
Some stories are spoken.
Others are worn.
Others are carried so quietly that the world never knows they exist.
I'm so glad you're here.
Under the Brim began with a single painting and quietly became something much bigger than I ever imagined. As I created these women, I found myself reflecting on my grandmothers, my mother, my sister, the women who inspired me, and ultimately, myself.
This collection became an inward journey.
My hope is that it becomes one for you as well.
Take your time.
Listen to the poems.
Read the stories.
Stand before the mirror.
Leave a piece of yourself in the hatbox if you choose.
Above all, allow yourself to slow down.
Perhaps you'll recognize someone you love.
Perhaps you'll recognize yourself.
Thank you for stepping beneath the brim.
— Denise 'NiSi' Lee
WITH GRATITUDE
Under the Brim may bear my name, but it did not come to life by my hands alone.
My deepest gratitude to the High Point Arts Council for the opportunity to share my first solo exhibition, for providing a space for these stories to live, and for the Artful Business Cohort. Through the cohort, I’ve had the opportunity to learn from incredible speakers, connect with arts organizations and venues, and build relationships that continue to open doors. A special thank you to Beverly, Kismet, and Page for their guidance, encouragement, and support along the way.
Thank you to the Greensboro Arts Hub for grant funding that helped provide supplies and resources needed to bring this body of work to life.
To Versatyle Creations, thank you for sharing your talent, creativity, and continued support of my work and vision (and being my bestie).
To Fred Lee, thank you for your support and for lending your hands when mine couldn't do everything—especially with transporting and installing these canvases.
To Michelle of Chelle Photography, thank you for capturing Under the Brim through your lens. Your photography has helped me share these paintings with audiences beyond the gallery walls, preserving the details, colors, and stories within each piece. And while no photograph can fully replace the experience of standing before the artwork in person, your images help invite others into that experience. Thank you for helping my art be seen.
To my son, Bryson—thank you for understanding the long weekends when Mommy disappeared into the studio to paint. Thank you for supporting me, helping me, and allowing me the space to chase something that meant so much to me.
To my parents, Rev. Howard and Mary Brown Jr., and my sister, Tina Machele, who traveled from Milwaukee and Las Vegas to be here for this moment: thank you. This is my first solo exhibition, and having you here to witness it means more than I can put into words. Thank you for the prayers, the encouragement, the listening ears, and for letting me cry, vent, brainstorm, brain dump, and talk my way through this journey. You carried pieces of this with me long before the paintings ever reached these walls.
Special thanks to William Andrew Taylor Jr. for audio editing and production, courtesy of Second Chance Music & Production, for helping me give another voice to the poetry that lives alongside these paintings.
And to every person who liked a post, shared a flyer, left a comment, sent an encouraging message, told someone about the exhibition, showed up, or simply paid attention as Under the Brim grew from an idea into something real—thank you.
Every share mattered. Every word of encouragement mattered. Every hand that helped mattered.
Thank you for helping me carry Under the Brim into the world.
— Denise “NiSi” Lee
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If this experience encouraged you...
If a painting reminded you of someone you love...
If a poem helped you feel seen...
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I invite you to sow into the work.
Your support helps create:
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Spaces where people can gather, reflect, and heal through art.
Thank you for stepping beneath the brim.
Perhaps you'll recognize someone you love.
Perhaps you'll recognize yourself.
Need to contact me directly? Email me: [email protected]
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