RALEIGH, N.C. -- A new exhibition is featuring four local artists and their interpretation of life in America during the pandemic and during worldwide protests for racial equality.

"Breathe: Life After Death" opened Monday in the Block Gallery at the Raleigh Municipal Building. It features pieces from JP Jermaine Powell, William Paul Thomas, Clarence Heyward, and Telvin Wallace.

Wallace says his oil paintings are a reflection of how Black men and women experience life.

"I did want it to be a super strong statement," Wallace says. "But mainly, I was thinking about the things that Black men deal with in America. The awkward energy that's in the world right now when you go out in public."

City of Raleigh's curator Stacy Bloom-Rexrode says there was a cancellation at Block due of COVID-19, enabling this opportunity. She reached out to Mike Williams with The Black on Black Project and he told her about "Breathe: Life After Death".

The exhibit is scheduled to be up until September 18, but because of the pandemic, the building is only open to people paying utility bills. Bloom-Rexrode says she is figuring out how to make it virtual.

Nonetheless, Wallace wants this to be used as a tool.

"I think that's the main thing here, you know, doing some reflection," Wallace says. "We can have the conversations, but I think it's time for people to just sit and listen."