Mx. Denise "Dee" Yookong Williams, LCSW, CFLE (They/Them) is a queer and genderqueer, biracial, freelancing local artist currently residing in Durham, North Carolina. Dee is currently a PhD Candidate of Social Work at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Click here to learn more about their research or here to learn about their dissertation project, Transformational Visual Intervention for Exposure to Suicide (Transformational-VIEWS).Dee has an art minor from Towson University and is professionally trained in the visual arts (e.g., painting, drawing, sculpture, and film photography). They have featured their work in shows and fundraisers including those sponsored through the The Baltimore Transgender Alliance, Creative Alliance, Hollins Creative Placemaking, Fem Co-Operation, Maryland Art Place, and The National Center for Children and Families. Through independent efforts, they often sell artwork to raise funds for causes related to social and racial justice, mental health, animal rights, community development, and nonprofits including Baltimore Racial Justice Action, The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Baltimore Abortion Fund, the North Carolina Abortion Fund, and Lancaster Farm Sanctuary.
As of 2016, Dee's artwork is also featured on an international best-selling book cover, Beleza Estranha, by Tércio Ribas Torres. In 2014, Dee taught youth art classes at the Columbia Art Center. They continue art instruction with individuals sporadically through local organizations, including the Durham Arts Council. They also received art awards and recognition including a Maryland Distinguished Art Scholar Honorable Mention, and they were Hammond High's Senior Showcase Speaker in 2008. |