LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — It's no secret that for decades, minority groups who have gone to cast a ballot have faced intense voter intimidation— with the use of tactics like Gerrymandering and poll taxes.
History has shown that the federal government would eventually step in.
Native Arkansan, Kevin Cole is an artist that has been using art to bring light to dark times.
Tucked away in the historic Dunbar Area of Little Rock and just a few miles from the Little Rock Nine monument is a place called Hearne Fine Art.
"We focus on black culture through literature in the fine arts," Garbo Hearne, Director of Hearne Fine Art said.
For more than three decades, Hearne has featured Arkansas and international artists to help people understand black culture.
On display inside the gallery is "Where Do We Go From Here? ll: Exploring Gerrymandering and Voting."
The artist behind that exhibit is Kevin Cole.
"This exhibit talks about and shares the history of the disenfranchisement of voters, black voters particularly," Hearne explained.
In the exhibit, Cole used pieces like poll tax receipts from 1893 and 1963 to support the challenges voters faced.
"Once you pay the poll tax, you may be asked some arbitrary questions like how many bubbles are in a bar of soap or how many marbles are in a can," Hearne described.
The other lesson this exhibit explores is gerrymandering, which Hearne explained is a tactic used to change a voting district to create results that help one political party and hurt the other.
Cole's work includes seven southern states that participated in gerrymandering.
"How can I show the process of mapping by using dirt in those areas where the black vote were suppressed," Cole described.
He also shared how he believes gerrymandering still happens today.
Just last year, a group of Black Arkansans filed a lawsuit alleging that newly drawn congressional districts diluted the influence of black voters.
A panel of judges tossed part of that lawsuit in October.
Cole also cited voting laws in Georgia that ban groups from giving food and water to voters waiting in line.
Aside from that, his work also includes designs of a necktie.
He explained that it's a piece that was sometimes used to scare voters.
"My grandfather took me to a tree where African Americans were lynched with a necktie in Terry, Arkansas," Cole said.
He hopes that his artwork will send a message that fear can't be a reason to not cast a ballot.
"They died so that we would have the right to vote and a right to make decisions about our lives and our families," Cole said.
Cole's exhibit started in Georgia and he has received a $50,000 grant to work on the pieces of art. The collection will be on display until April 1.
If you're in need of assistance, Hearne Fine Art also helps people register to vote.