Meet Gladys Yarbrough!
Meet Gladys Ross Yarbrough—an Atlanta-based jewelry designer, beader, historian, and storyteller. One of her necklaces, And Still We See the Light, is currently on display as part of the 2026 Roswell Roots Black History Month Celebration, presented by the Roswell Recreation, Parks, Historic and Cultural Affairs Department. Fragments is the title of this year’s juried art exhibition hosted by the Roswell Roots Arts Committee. The exhibition opened on January 19 and runs through Thursday, March 26, at the Roswell Cultural Arts Center, 950 Forest Street, Roswell, Georgia. The Roswell Roots Arts Committee describes Fragments as bearing “witness to the pieces and parts of life’s residue.” Featuring paintings and sculptural works by several accomplished artists, the exhibition highlights found objects and unconventional materials that honor stories of the past while giving rise to new narratives.
Yarbrough is a member of African Americans for the Arts (AAFTA), a collective of African American artists and supporters who advocate for Black cultural expression. Beyond her artistic practice, she is a retired educator who served for ten years at Georgia State University, where she shared roles both as a college administrator and a clinical professor. For Yarbrough, teaching and art-making are deeply interconnected, each requiring openness to change, respect for diverse perspectives, and a willingness to “go with the flow.”
Yarbrough’s necklace, And Still We See the Light, incorporates fossils, copper, and carved calcite beads, anchored by a striking rectangular Baule brass pendant. The piece reflects on the fragmentation of the African diaspora, particularly in the United States. As Yarbrough explains, “The circular forms of the fossils evoke cycles of time, memory, and endurance. They speak to the trials and tribulations of our collective past, and at the same time, affirm our resilience and resolve. Across generations, memory is carried forward, shaped but never erased.”
While most of the works in Fragments consist of two-dimensional mixed-media pieces, paintings, and sculptures, Yarbrough is honored that her necklace is the only jewelry artwork selected for the exhibition. She believes the jurors were drawn to both the piece’s aesthetic distinction and the strength of its narrative. Fragments offers a rare opportunity to experience powerful creative narratives shaped through innovative materials and artistic vision. Although the Roswell Roots Black History Month Celebration concludes on February 28, the exhibition remains on view through March 26. Admission is free. For more information, visit RoswellRoots.com. Gladys Ross Yarbrough may be reached at: ottoross@hotmail.com.
