“This was such a huge blessing; it was like Christmas. If this hadn’t happened, and we weren’t given a new furnace, it would have shut us down.” — Willis ‘Bing’ Davis
Emerge founders come together to help keep famous art studio open
Local Art Legend Willis ‘Bing’ Davis extends a huge, heartfelt ‘Thank You’ to Five Star Home Services and Van Martin Roofing
DAYTON — For more than 20 years, the Willis “Bing” Davis Art Studio has been an important cultural center in West Dayton. Created by the lifelong educator and famous art legend, Willis “Bing” Davis, the community center fell on hard times this past winter as temperatures plunged below freezing cold and the HVAC system began failing.
“The problems actually started last summer,” Davis said. “The air conditioner went out during an event we were hosting here. We also had a summer camp here for kids through our non-profit, Shango, and it was getting very hot. We hadn’t updated the building in years, and there were a lot of things we knew that needed to be done. We knew we would need work done soon, but we didn’t have the money.”
In addition to the air conditioner, Davis explained their furnace wasn’t operating and the roof was leaking. Heading into wintertime this year, these problems weighed heavily upon the organization, and they feared the worst.
“We started to gather small donations,” Davis said. “We were looking for ways to get our HVAC system working and we had people in the community trying to find ways to get help. Everything was coming to a head at the same time. It almost shut us down.”
Eventually, Davis said, he was blessed when Elaine Bonner, director of philanthropy at Emerge, put him into contact with Five Star Home Services.
“We communicated with Five Star,” he said. “They gave us an estimate and we got a donation. We ended up meeting their financial requirements for help and they took care of the remaining balance. This turned out to be a godsend for us, in helping us get back on our feet. This was one of the coldest winters we’ve had in the past few years, so we really appreciated it. They were very professional. Their workers were great. They were very caring. It was such a wonderful experience.”
Additionally, Davis said Bonner also connected them with Van Martin Roofing, which was able to help with the issues with the roof. Both companies are proud supporters of Emerge Recovery & Trade Initiative.
“Throughout this process, I learned what these companies are doing in the community,” Davis said. “I also learned about Emerge Recovery & Trade Initiative through them. What a wonderful organization.”
As a lifelong educator who has held positions at many local schools and universities, Davis said the mission at Emerge and the Trades Institute resonates with him deeply.
“This was such a huge blessing,” he said. “It was like Christmas. If this hadn’t happened, and we weren’t given a new furnace, it would have shut us down.”
Davis explained how he uses his studio and his art to effect positive change in the community, working with youth and serving as an activist for the African American community.
“Art is an agent of change to enhance and improve life,” he said. “It’s amazing to see an organization that does this, that has a ‘Profit On Purpose’ model like Five Star does. I look forward to working with you all in the future.”
Heading into winter last year, PBS aired an in-depth biography on Davis and his historic life as an international artist and educator. You can watch that one-hour documentary by clicking here.
“Bing is a beloved legend in the art world,” Bonner said. “These repairs had to be done quickly. I got a call asking if I knew anyone that could do the work. I connected Bing with Five Star Home Services and Van Martin Roofing and the cost of repairs was completed at a discounted rate. It was wonderful seeing our founders’ companies coming together to upgrade the HVAC system and fixing the aging roof at his studio in Dayton.”
Born in 1937 in South Carolina, Davis’s mother moved him to Dayton at a young age where he was raised. Although he was a gifted athlete in school, art eventually became his true calling.
“Art gave me a feeling like nothing else could,” he said. “I eventually became a high school art teacher.”
Bing’s work is described as an affirmation of humanity. He describes art as a “universal experience.” Eventually, he said, the artist should become his or her own masterpiece.
Davis has a long, decorated career as an educator and artist
Growing up on Dayton’s East Side, Davis attended Washington Elementary School as a youth. At 6’ and 4” inches tall, he was a talented all-city basketball player. He graduated from Wilbur Wright High School in 1955 before going on to DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, where he graduated in 1959. In his early career, Davis taught art at Dayton’s Colonel White High School. He later attended the Dayton Art Institute. In 1967, he earned his Master’s of Education degree at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. From 1975 to 1976, he pursued graduate studies at Indiana University.
Returning to DePauw University in 1970, Davis served as assistant dean of art and coordinator of Black Studies. He was the only black faculty member. In 1973, he attended his first meeting of the National Conference of Artists (NCA) and made his first of many trips to Africa (Ghana). He was later appointed assistant dean of the graduate school and associate professor of art at Miami University in 1976.
That same year, Davis held his first one-man show at the Studio Museum of Harlem. In 1978, he was invited to chair the Art Department and become director of the new Paul Robeson Cultural and Performing Arts Center by Dr. Arthur E. Thomas of Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. Davis also served on Central State University’s faculty for 20 years; he was a visiting scholar at the University of Dayton and an artist in residence at Wright State University.
Additionally, Davis has an illustrious award-winning record as a community leader, artist, activist and curator
He has had exhibitions at the American Craft Museum, the Renwick Gallery, the Maryland Institute College of Art and Design, the Savannah College of Art and Design, Anacotia Museum, the National Museum of Art of Senegal, West Africa, the United States Embassy Accra, in Ghana, and the Museum fur Angewandte Kunst in Frankfort, Germany.
Davis was visiting artist-lecturer for Panafest ‘94 (Pan-African Historical Theatre Festival) in Accra, Ghana. In 1997, he received the Ohio Art Educator of the Year Award. After retiring from teaching in 1998, he also received the 1999 Global Youth Peace and Tolerance Award and the 2001 Ohioan Pegasus Award.
Davis has also served as the president of the board of directors of the National Conference of Artists. In honor of his two adult children, he also established the EbonNia Gallery in the developing Wright/Dunbar neighborhood on the west side of Dayton.
A hometown cultural hero, Davis has a grown son and daughter. He currently resides three minutes from his studio in Dayton with his wife, Audrey. For more information about his historic life, click here!