Asha Ama | Reclaiming Identity Through Design

Anyone who has had the opportunity to encounter one of the many Duncanson Artists-in-Residence over the years has been fortunate to witness firsthand the creativity, courage, and cultural depth that define each year’s Artist-in-Residence. Each year, the artist transforms the way we see ourselves and invites us to reimagine the narratives we carry. 

Asha Ama Bias-Daniels, a Cincinnati native with roots reaching across the African diaspora, emerged as a formidable creative voice long before she was selected as the 2021 Duncanson Artist-in-Residence. A multidisciplinary fashion designer, costume creator, and storyteller, Bias-Daniels has dedicated her career to exploring identity, ancestry, and liberation through wearable art. Her designs have appeared in national publications, graced runways across the country, and captivated audiences who see a bold merging of contemporary vision with ancestral memory in her work.

Throughout her residency, Bias-Daniels transformed gallery spaces and community rooms into living studios of dialogue. “The placements of Asha's garments in the Duncanson Foyer,” said Elise Solomon, Taft Museum of Art’s Director of Learning & Outreach, “created an interesting conversation between an incredibly contemporary design and the bucolic landscapes in the formal interior space. Seeing the works of Black Cincinnatians from different generations demonstrated the power of creativity and inspiration.” 

Bias-Daniels's workshops drew students, emerging designers, and community members eager to explore how clothing can serve as cultural armor, storytelling vessel, and spiritual anchor. Participants stitched memory into fabric, explored the politics of Black adornment, and learned how fashion can become a language of autonomy.

Asha Ama Bias-Daniels represents the best of what contemporary Black artistry can be: fearless, historically rooted, community-centered, and insistently visionary. She reminds us that fashion is not superficial but a tool of power, and a space for liberation.