Celebrating Black History Month -- with Art!

"Targeted" by Vitus Shell (2016) 

Art Center Sarasota and the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Pete are currently hosting exhibits featuring the work of Black artists and Black portraits, respectively. It's no coincidence since it is Black history month. But the timing would always be right to showcase these works. 

The "Vitus Shell: 31 Flavors" exhibit at Art Center Sarasota is incredibly striking. This work -- entitled "Targeted" -- is dense with detail that rewards the viewer who takes the time to really look. Shell's mixed media work combines his own painted images with newspaper articles, cartoons and advertisements for items like skin bleacher and hair relaxer. 

In this painting, a Black man is going about his business wearing a target on his chest. It's like a sniper's target you see in the movies. The first thing that came to my mind was the risk this man runs of being the subject of police brutality. But of course he is also the target of racism in his daily life. The canvas itself includes the front page of "The Colored American," a weekly newspaper available in free Black communities in the Northeast from 1837-1842, and cartoonish drawings of Black figures styled on Little Black Sambo and apes. 

Shell has said his work is a mesh of ideas from today's world and past events that shape what's happening today. It's powerful stuff. For more on Shell and his work, click here and here. The first article includes a video of the artist in his studio that's definitely worth a watch. The exhibit runs through March 5th. 

"Night Rider Five" (detail) by Jeannette Bradley (2021) 

The "Visions in Black" exhibit, also at Art Center Sarasota, was curated by the Suncoast Black Arts Collaborative. It features the work of artists of African descent living in Florida. My favorite work in the show was "Night Rider Five" by Jeannette Bradley. As you can see in this detail, the multimedia work includes collaged pictures of Black women from another era. I like the juxtaposition with the abstracted faces of young Black girls. Perhaps these are the women they will grow up to be. 

I'm still contemplating the meaning of the title of the work. The term "night riders" harkens back to the time when masked men traveling on horseback would terrorize Blacks in their communities. They were often associated with the Klu Klux Klan. Is the mere existence of these girls somehow similarly threatening to some people? For a short video in which more work is shown and the Collaborative's founder Michele Redwine talks about the project, click here. The show runs through March 5th. 

Anonymous photograph

The Museum of Fine Arts in St. Pete has taken a dive into its repository for its "Explore the Vaults: Black Portraits" exhibit. The show runs through February 27. It was definitely a worthy endeavor. 

My favorite works in the show were created not by a well known artist but by an anonymous 19th century photographer. A family album circa 1865 held 20 tintypes and cartes de visite (calling cards with photographs on them). Due to their fragility, the exhibit contained only scans of the portraits, but they are wonderful. The wall card noted that studios at the time used idealized painted backdrops and ornate props for their photo shoots. It is thought that the family pictured had emigrated from the UK to the United States. In the absence of information about the work, I looked to the donors. The images are only a tiny portion of the thousands of photographs donated to the Museum from the Dandrew-Dapkin Collection since 2009. Thank goodness for philanthropy.  

"The Undefeated" by Fletcher Martin (1948)

"The Undefeated" by Fletcher Martin also captured my attention. The image was taken from Joe Louis' last championship fight in 1948 and depicts Louis' adversary, "Jersey" Joe Walcott. In the 11th round of the fight, Louis knocked Walcott out and was declared the winner. Walcott nonetheless somehow got to his feet, and the referee caught him just before he collapsed. Millions of Americans listened to the fight on the radio and watched it on tv. Louis' victory was front page news. So Martin's work would have resonated with those who had seen the fight at the time. 

The image hit me as hard as a knock-out punch. There's something about those bony ribs and off kilter face that just cries out, and the strong diagonal lines of the boxing ring create serious tension. Ultimately, the scene calls to my mind not a boxing match but a crucifixion. 

While not part of the Black Portraits exhibit, I'd be remiss not to include the MFA's recent acquisition of Kehinde Wiley's "Leviathan Zodiac (World Stage: Israel)." It is glorious.  

"Leviathan Zodiac (World Stage: Israel)"
by Kehinde Wiley (2011)

I've always associated Wiley with his recreations of famous paintings in which he's substituted anonymous Black people in the place of historic White figures (think "Napoleon Leading the Army over the Alps") and his official portrait of President Obama. President Obama aside, Wiley typically finds his models by walking the streets of whatever city he happens to be in. (I'm sure it's easier for him to find people to pose now than it was when he was starting out!) 

Wiley's World Stages series focus on regions with complex socio-political structures, including Haiti, China, Brazil, Africa, Jamaica and Israel. I wasn't previously aware of these series, and I am blown away not only by the beauty of these portraits, but by the detail and meaning embedded in these works. In the Israeli series, the backdrops to (and on) the figures are drawn from decorative traditions from a variety of Jewish cultures, including Arab-Israeli, Persian, Ethiopian and Ashkenazi. Wiley designed the frames, which are integral components of the works. Each frame is topped by the Lions of Judah and the hands of a Kohen (priest) holding tablets. The Ten Commandments are inscribed on most of the tablets. In the works inspired by Arab-Israeli textiles, though, the words of Rodney King are written instead -- "Can we all just get along?" 

The Jewish Museum in New York presented a show of Wiley's World Stage: Israel paintings in 2012. I am so sorry I missed that show. Happily, if you have four minutes, you can take a stroll through the gallery with the curator and hear from Wiley himself.  Click here for your private tour. 

Here's to celebrating all of our cultures through art.