Halfway through a warm but breezy day, the assembly hall of the Baltimore War Memorial is packed with visitors. They have come to admire, experience, and shop for art from more than 40 local artists participating in Artscape , a festival that draws thousands of people annually to the downtown area. There is photography, sculpture, abstract and derivative art of famous people like Marvin Gaye and Nina Simone, and reconceptualized comic book covers.

At the Quid Nunc Art Gallery’s station, several paintings of Pinocchio reimagined as a Black child stand out. He is controlled, surveilled, and undermined all while proclaiming Black Lives Matter. Artist Keila Evans originally painted four Pinocchio paintings in honor of her fellow Baltimorean, Freddie Gray.

“I felt a lot of emotions and feel

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