SENIOR CONSULTANTS
Jason Miccolo Johnson
Photographer
Jason Miccolo Johnson is one of the most celebrated photographers of the African American experience, having captured the likenesses of icons including Thurgood Marshall, Oprah Winfrey, Nelson Mandela, Muhammad Ali, and seven U.S. presidents. His images have appeared in five Smithsonian exhibitions, over 70 magazines, and dozens of books, with 50 photographs from his landmark solo work Soul Sanctuary: Images of the African American Worship Experience held permanently in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
A Howard University alumnus and recipient of the ArtMaker Award from The HistoryMakers, Johnson has served as the official photographer for the National Association of Black Journalists since 1990 and organized the largest gathering of professional Black photographers in history to celebrate his mentor, the legendary Gordon Parks. The Gordon Parks Mus His lens has chronicled some of the most defining moments in Black American life, making him an indispensable guide to Obsidian's photographic archives.
Sheila Solomon
Journalist
Sheila Solomon's career in mass media arts spans more than 50 years, during which she was among the first African American women to work in the newsrooms of major regional and national newspapers. A reporter and editor at outlets including Newsday, The Charlotte Observer, the Chicago Tribune, and the Daily Press, she has also served as a senior consultant for the Democracy Fund and as a judge for the National Headliner Awards.
​
Solomon's honors include induction into the Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications Hall of Fame at Hampton University, the Ida B. Wells Award from the National Association of Black Journalists, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Chicago Headline Club. A tireless advocate for diverse voices in the press, Sheila brings her deep institutional knowledge of American journalism to Obsidian, helping ensure that the stories held in the archives are authenticated, contextualized, and preserved with journalistic integrity.
Pemon Rami
Film Director/Producer
Since the late 1960s, Pemon Rami has been involved in the development of television, films, music concerts, documentaries, plays, and multimedia productions — and stands as the first African American film casting director in Chicago. BookBaby He produced the Warner Brothers feature film Of Boys and Men starring Angela Bassett and Robert Townsend, and the critically acclaimed 93 Days, shot in Nigeria and starring Danny Glover, which earned him an African Academy Award nomination and is currently streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime.
​
In 2019, Rami was selected for inclusion in the HistoryMakers Digital Archive, housed at the Library of Congress. His honors include the Black Harvest Film Festival's Deloris Jordan Award, the Chicago Defender's 50 Men of Excellence Award, and City Council Proclamations from both Detroit and Los Angeles. A lifelong champion of the Black arts movement, Pemon guides Obsidian in identifying and preserving the cinematic stories that define and reclaim the Black narrative on screen.
123-456-7890
