In 2017, musician Solange Knowles won a Grammy for “Cranes in the Sky,” a soulful song which chronicles the artist’s attempts to distract herself from pain.
But, despite her efforts, Knowles sings, the feelings linger like “cranes in the sky.”
The lyric was inspired by the constant construction Knowles saw against the Miami cityscape.
“She used that image to convey these feelings that are always overhead, casting a shadow,” says Chattanooga artist Josiah Golson, who has used Knowles’ album to help others creatively process their own experiences.
In 2015, Golson founded 800 Collective, a group that uses art as a means of civic engagement. Through workshops and online activities, his goal is to connect people to artmaking in a way that is relevant to their everyday lives, tackling topics such as affordable housing, educational equity and stereotypes.