Mary Jackson & her three foot basket
Mary Jackson and her baskets. Photo by Jennifer Gerardi
Kerry James Marshall 2014
Kehinde Wiley, NYT photo
Left: Ice T by Kehinde Wiley 2005 Right: Napoleon by J-L David 1806
BlackPast.org Blog
Hazel Singer writes:
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Three artists working in our communities today have rich connections
with the past. This connectedness allows us to appreciate those who have
gone before; teaches us that all art is cultural appropriation; gives
us insights into today; and gives youth a path forward.
The artists featured here are Mary Jackson, Kerry James Marshall, and
Kehinde Wiley. They have all been widely exhibited in major museums and
represented in prestigious galleries.
Mary Jackson is a fiber artist and a MacArthur Fellow. She was born, and still works, in South Carolina, a descendant of the Gullah
community. Basketry and fiber arts have been cultural assets among the
Gullah people, with linkages back to their West African ancestors. Basket making
is a feature of most societies, both as an art form as well as for
utilitarian purposes.Gullah baskets tend to be made from sweetgrass,
with other materials woven in. The color palette tends to be neutral and
the designs derived from functional items.
Kerry James Marshall
is a painter and sculptor born in Birmingham, Alabama, raised in Los
Angeles, California, and resides primarily in Chicago, Illinois. The
themes of his work revolve around African American life and history. He
and his family have chosen to reside in a working class neighborhood in
Chicago because he feels called to paint the richness of black life as
it is experienced by most African Americans. His current exhibition is in New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's contemporary wing, the Met Breuer.
Kehinde Wiley was born in Los Angeles, educated at Yale, and is now based in New York. He is a portrait painter and sculptor.
He is interested in shifting people's perspectives and perceptions of
black people and other people of color. To achieve this, he takes
classic European paintings of aristocrats and religious figures and
recreates them using sports stars, hip-hop artists, and often, people
chosen right from the street. His paintings have the lush colors and
backgrounds and complex compositions of the 'Masters' of the Renaissance.
He also explores classic Greek, Roman, and Chinese themes, again using
black people as models. He has series based in India, Israel, Sri Lanka,
and France amongst other places.
His current exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) features stained glass windows, religious triptychs, sculptures in the style of Houdon, and large format oils.
Each of these artists brings such visual joy to the viewer. They address
important cultural and political history issues. They look to the past
to create in the present and pave the way for younger artists to think
critically and look for new ways to express their ideas.
Comment by email:
Thanks, Bill. As always I appreciate it when you share/spread the word. Warmly,-Hazel [Hazel Singer]
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