By Kristina Schulz, University Archivist, University of Dayton

Originally posted on: University of Dayton Blog

Bing Davis has created a legacy as an educator, artist, mentor, community builder, community leader and innovator. He has spent his lifetime as an artist who creates opportunities for others.

Born in Greer, South Carolina, Davis moved to Dayton with his family as an infant. He grew up knowing he wanted to create art. Those around him encouraged and supported his vocation. A well-rounded athlete for Dayton Public Schools, Davis played basketball and was on the track team. He attended DePauw University, playing basketball and majoring in art education. In his words, “They needed a small forward (on the basketball team), and I needed an education, so we traded.”

Davis graduated from DePauw in 1959 and took a job teaching art at Colonel White High School in the Dayton Public Schools. He fell in love with teaching and furthered his education at the Dayton Art Institute and Miami University, earning a master’s degree.

Davis helped pilot the Living Arts Center, a new program for arts education and cultural enrichment for students, funded by a Title III program through Dayton Public Schools. Davis said the Living Arts Center’s approach to developing the whole person through the arts transformed him from teaching art to teaching people.

When the Living Arts Center funding was not renewed, Davis moved on to teach at DePauw University as its first full-time Black faculty member. During his years at DePauw, he became active in the National Conference of Artists, one of the oldest operating African American arts organizations in the United States. He served as vice president in 1973 and president in 1979, helping to develop and mentor artists.

Davis’ academic career brought him to teach at Miami University, then Central State University, where he led the art department. Davis retired from teaching in 1998 and pursued his next goal. He wrote grants to open Shango (the Center for the Study of African Art and Culture) and the EbonNia Gallery on West Third Street in Dayton to offer workshops and cultural experiences for students and aspiring artists.

His desire to elevate and empower Black students led to the creation of the Skyscrapers project to highlight local African Americans who have excelled in their fields. Local African American artists create portraits of them to be placed within the Dayton Public Schools. This is a mere sampling of the community work Davis has done in and for the Dayton community.

In 2023, Davis chose the University of Dayton Archives and Special Collections to be the repository for the Bing Davis Papers. In 2024, following the processing of the collection, the University celebrated the donation with a public event, hosted an exhibit of his works and papers and served as a resource for the PBS/ThinkTV documentary Willis “Bing” Davis: Reach High & Reach Back.

Make your plan to visit University of Dayton’s Archives and Special Collections to use the Davis Papers to inspire your work to empower others.

Last Updated on February 14, 2025 by Emily Gainer