Monica Ikegwu – Biography

Biography

Monica Ikegwu (b.1998, Baltimore, Maryland) is a figurative painter. Ikegwu earned a BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art and an MFA from the New York Academy of Art.

In presenting the notion of the Black figure that is captivating and unconventional, Ikegwu uses color, fluid lines, and textured backgrounds to compose hyperrealist imagery. The concepts for her paintings stem from her surroundings, experiences, and encounters with people in Baltimore. The subjects presented in Ikegwu’s paintings are often her friends, siblings, and other family members from whom she draws her inspiration as she watches them progress through life.

Ikegwu is among the eight African American artists featured in the 2022 Venice Biennale exhibition The Afro-Futurist Manifesto: Blackness Reimagined, curated by Myrtis Bedolla of Galerie Myrtis. The exhibit explores the theme of Black life on the continuum of its imagined future presented in the Personal Structures art fair.

Ikegwu earned first place in the XL Catlin Art prize (2018), was a YoungArts Finalist (2017), a Gold medal winner in the NAACP ACT-SO National competition (2016), and a Scholastic silver medal portfolio winner (2016). Her work was exhibited at the XL Catlin Art Prize traveling exhibition and the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in 2018.

Photograph by Lia Latty

Reparations – Some Things are Just Owed and Some…

Reparations: Some Things are Just Owed and Some More than Others

Solo Exhibition featuring Wesley Clark
September 22 – October, 31, 2019

artwork | artist statement | curatorial statement | about Wesley Clark

Artist Statement
The exhibition, Reparations: Some Things are Just Owed, and Some More than Others, showcases a selection of objects created by a recently discovered artisanal-based company, Reparations & Co. Reparations & Co. (a.k.a. Rep & Co.) founded by Eugene & Morris, two Black men during the Reconstruction era, created functional, subversive, and empowering objects — some futuristic in thought and process. Not much is known about the craftsmen or the company, however, in recent years several objects have surfaced on the auction and secondary markets with the company’s logo, prompting research. As such, researchers discovered what is believed to be their shop in an overgrown, abandoned, dilapidated barn-like structure near Freetown, in Glen Burnie, MD. The collection found is vast and while remarkably well preserved, some objects were vandalized, prompting restoration efforts. On display in this exhibition viewers get a peek into the past through the minds of two craftsmen as they fuse economic empowerment, restoration of identity, and more into their functional and decorative objects; during a pivotal yet short-lived period of American history.

The fictitious narrative of Reparations & Co. is what drives many of the aesthetic choices; it is the vehicle used to create a dialogue on ideas of racial socialization — as described in Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome, by Dr. Joy DeGruy — as a means of expanding and internalizing the discussion of reparations to include what we as Black Americans owe ourselves.

“…the process whereby we come to know our strengths, understand the world in which we live, and position ourselves to thrive. Continual education is at the heart of racial socialization. For young children, education is the elder’s responsibility. For adults, the responsibility is our own. We have to remain vigilant and questioning. We have to continue to constantly endeavor to keep ourselves informed and our education current. We have to question the image we ourselves are portraying. We have to examine the sounds and pictures we expose ourselves to. We have to filter what we hear on the news and strive to understand what is true.“
– Joy DeGruy, Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome

watch Joy DeGruy lecture on Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome

Whether from present day or generational trauma, communal preparation and advancement are at the heart of this body of work. Under the umbrella of preparation, inwardly focused themes around mental health, family history and legacy, self-respect and dignity, leadership, rebuilding the Black economy and restoring relationships are touched on as a means of being solution-oriented. While there are outside influences discussed on the traditional theme of reparations, the focus remains inward. Two examples of such influences can be found when examining the works The Profiteers 1 & The Profiteers 2. The first recognizes existing companies operating in the US (though possibly under a new name) that profited from the enslavement of Africans. The second names corporations that have or still use prison labor and thereby support the growth of the prison industrial complex (i.e., Sprint, Verizon, Bank of America and Walmart). My intent is to think about self-respect, as well as building and supporting a Black economy, as each name listed represents an industry for the Blacks to build and compete in.

A large portion of my work considers aging, weathering, and/or antiquing objects driven by fictional narratives, which informs my aesthetic choices. Most often this process is about linking present day content to historical issues, or ideas around value. Objects that are salvaged and displayed are deemed to possess a certain value or esteem. I set the stage for that sense of value to be linked to contemporary socio-political or socio-economic issues and conversations. With this body of work, I’ve chosen to incorporate custom automotive high gloss paints — often used on “tricked out” or restored cars — as a contemporary reference to notions of value. These “candy” or “flip flop/color shifting” paints are typical for early/classic model cars souped up with big, fancy rims, chrome details, or engine/body modifications. These cars have been popularized by rap culture in particular and therefore are associated with money, fame, and all that comes with it — just as owning a certain antique furniture piece once were — hence speaks to a younger generation’s value system. Such paints were incorporated into the works, Restoring our Majesty, Wading in the Waters of Babylon, and The Tell-All Earbox: Model no. C3l3stial-4, as one of two visual elements — the other being “tagging”/graffiti writing — to fuse the temporal space between the antique lover and millennial mind.

I’m not concerned with the viewer engaging my personal narratives that drive the work. More often than not, they’re just for me and my process. Reparations & Co. marks the first time my working narrative has held an elemental position (in the form of a logo placed on a few works) and thus a larger more robust storyline has emerged. I work with fictitious narratives as a means of setting a stage for myself mentally — and every stage has its props and boundaries. Therefore I’m constantly questioning, “Does this idea/object fit within the boundaries of my stage and how?” The objects (props) I choose to create are often ubiquitous, even mundane items with slight hybridity-like aspects tossed in for good measure. For the viewer, it’s the objects’ familiarity — loaded with preconceived notions and understandings – that allow entryway. With that familiarity in place, the stage is set for viewers to explore the relationship with the “foreign” social and/or political elements incorporated into the work.

Delita Martin – I Look For You

Delita Martin

artwork | video | statement | bio | resume

I Look for You

Galerie Myrtis is pleased to offer I Look for You, a varied limited edition print by Delita Martin. Created in an edition of 25, the prints vary slightly as each has been hand sown by Martin. Included with the purchase of each print is a limited edition copy of Delita’s new book, Shadows in the Garden. Each book has been signed and numbered by Delita.
Varied Print Edition: 25 – Book Edition Size: 25
Price: Contact Gallery

Shadows In The Garden focuses on the work of Texas based artist Delita Martin. It highlights works from several exhibitions and works held in various collections. Contents include an introductory essay by artist and curator Vicki Meek. artist interview with Joshua Asante, Essays by Dr. Kheli R. Willetts and Gary Reece, and select bibliography. With full color reproductions of all works.
 
 

book preview
 
 
 
I Look For You, Relief Printing, Stibilo Pencil, Acrylic, Lithography, Liquid Gold Leaf, Decorative Papers, Fabric, Hand Stitching, 15 x 20

Detail

M. Scott Johnson Photography

M. Scott Johnson

artwork | statement | bio | resume

photography | sculpture

Photography

M. Scott Johnson Sculpture

M. Scott Johnson

artwork | statement | bio | resume

sculpture | photography

Sculpture

AfriCOBRA Biographies of Artists


September 15 – October 27th, 2018

Featured Artists (year of membership)
Akili Ron Anderson (1979), Kevin Cole (2003), Adger Cowans (1978), Michael D. Harris (1979), Napoleon Jones-Henderson (founding member, 1968), James Phillips (1973), Frank Smith (1973), Nelson Stevens (founding member, 1968), and Renee Stout (2017)

artwork | artists | artists’ talk | photos | catalogue | about AFRICOBRA






Biographies of the Artists

Akili Ron Anderson
Born in 1946 in Washington, DC
Lives and works in Washington, DC
AfriCOBRA Member: 1979

Akili Ron Anderson studied at the Corcoran School of Art, Washington, DC (1964-65), and graduated from Howard University, Washington, DC (BFA 1969), (MFA 2008).

His solo exhibitions include Akili Ron Anderson: A Fifty Year Retrospective of Black Art and Life (2016; Hampton University Museum, Hampton, VA); Paintings for Projection (1973; The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC); and solo exhibitions at The New Muse (1977; New York, NY); Miya Gallery (1975; Washington, DC); Weusi Gallery (1975; New York, NY); Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corp. (1975; New York, NY); Metropolitan Applied Research Center (1975; New York, NY); Howard University Gallery of Art (1973; Washington, DC); and Duke University (1969; Durham, NC)

Anderson’s work has been included in several group exhibitions, including AfriCOBRA Now: Works on Paper (2016; Hearne Fine Art, Little Rock, AR); It Takes a Nation: Art for Social Justice (2016; American University Museum, Washington, DC); From the Ashes: Rebirth of the Human Spirit  (2014; The Pepco Edison Place Gallery, Washington, DC); We Speak the Souls of Ancestors  (2013; DC Commission on the Art and Humanities, Washington, DC);  Three Decades of American Printmaking: The Brandywine Workshop (2013; Philadelphia Museum of Art); AfriCOBRA Now: Contemporary American Works Rooted in Africa (2007; Hampton University Museum, VA); Art is Service of the Lord (1995; Schomburg Museum, New York, NY); and has shown at the Kreeger Museum (2011; Washington, DC); the Anacostia Museum (1999; Washington, DC); the Orlando Museum of Art (1997, Orlando, FL); and the F. Bader Gallery (1974; Washington, DC).


Kevin Cole
Born 1960 in Pine Bluff, AR
Lives and works in Atlanta
AfriCOBRA Member: 2003

Kevin Cole graduated from the University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff (BS 1982); the University of Illinois, Champaign (MA 1983); and Northern Illinois University, Dekalb (MFA 1985).

His solo exhibitions include Blanket Series (2018; Dinah Washington Cultural Art Center, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL); Sound tracks of Color (2017; Plano Art Center, Plano, TX); Living off the Wall (2014; 10th Street Gallery, St. Louis, MO); and Beneath the Sound of Color (2007; Hearne Fine Arts, Little Rock, AR).

Cole’s work has been included in group exhibitions, including Outside the Lines, (2013-2014; Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Valerie Cassel Oliver, Curator, Houston, TX); Fragments of Frozen Sound (2008; Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia); In Context: The Language of Abstraction (2008; Abrons Arts Center, New York); AfriCOBRA Now: Contemporary American Works Rooted in Africa (2007; Hampton University Museum, VA); Kevin Cole and Alonzo Davis (2206; Old Dillard Museum, Fort Lauderdale, FL); Different Way of Seeing (2006; Noyes Museum of Art, Oceanville, NJ) and Absence of Color (2001; Philadelphia Museum of Art).

In 2018, Kevin Cole was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame.


Adger Cowans
Born in 1936 in Columbus, OH
Lives and works in New York, NY
AfriCOBRA Member: 1978

Adger Cowens graduated from Ohio University (BFA, 1958).

His solo exhibitions include Running Deep (2007; Philips Museum of Art, Lancaster, PA); Adger Cowans (2005; Hearne Fine Art Gallery, Little Rock, AR); Adger Cowans (2001; Ronald M. Ollie Collection); Captured Moments (1989; June Kelly Gallery, New York, NY); Adger Cowans (1989; Gordon Parks Gallery, Yonkers, NY); Adger Cowans (1963; Raymond Kerr Gallery, New York, NY); Moments (1981; Greenspace Gallery, New York, NY); Adger Cowans (1977; Jade Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA); Adger Cowans (1975; Shado Gallery, Oregon City, OR); Adger Cowans (1967; Friends Gallery (James Van Der Zee) New York, NY); and Adger Cowans (1965; Heliography Gallery, New York, NY)

Cowans’s work has been included in several group exhibitions, including Audioacity: Music as Muse (2011; Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia, PA); Elements of Soul (2011; Chashama Gallery, New York, NY); Two Decades of Excellence (2008-09; Hearne Fine Arts Gallery, Little Rock, AR); Apart Together (2008; A.P. Garcia Gallery, New York, NY); AfriCOBRA: Contemporary American Work Rooted in Africa (2007; Hampton University Museum, Hampton, VA); Committed to the Image: Contemporary Black Photography (2001; Brooklyn Museum of Art, New York, NY); A History of African-American Photography (1999-2000; The Smithsonian Institution; Washington, DC); Locating the Spirit; Religion and Spirituality in African-American Art (1999; Anacostia Museum, Washington, DC); and he has shown at The Studio Museum in Harlem (1973; New York, NY); and the George Eastman Gallery House (1963; Rochester, NY).


Michael D. Harris
Born in 1948 in
Lives and works in Atlanta
AfriCOBRA Member: 1979

Dr. Michael D. Harris graduated from Bowling Green State University (BS, 1971), Howard University (MFA, 1979), Yale University (MA, African American Studies, 1989), (MA, History of Art, 1990), (M.Phil, History of Art, 1991), (PhD, 1996).

His solo exhibitions include Art Portraits/Portraits of the Artist (2017-2018; September Gray Gallery, Atlanta, GA); Equal Rites: The Art of Michael D. Harris (2011-2012; Hammonds House Galleries, Atlanta, GA); Blues People (2005; The Beach Institute, Savannah, GA); and Letters from Home (2004; Sonja Hanes Center for Black Culture, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC).

Harris’s work has been included in several group exhibitions, including Portraits of Who We Are (2018; David Driskell Center, University of Maryland ); AfriCOBRA Now: Works on Paper (2016; Hearne Fine Art, Little Rock, AR); AfriCOBRA: Art for the People (2015; Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Art and Culture); 2ATW: Two Artists, Two Works (2014; Center for the Art of Africa and It’s Diaspora, University of Texas, Austin); AfriCOBRA: Art and Impact (2013; The DuSable Museum, Chicago, IL); Artifical Afrika (2006; Gigantic Art Space, New York, NY); The Road In Sight: Contemporary Art in North Carolina (2005; Duke University, Durham, NC); Blackness in Color: Visual Expressions of the Black Arts Movement (2000; Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University); Three Shades of Black (2000; Denver Art Museum, CO);  AfriCOBRA and Group Fromaje, Esthetique Universelle, Universal Aesthetics (1989; Howard University, Washington, DC); and An Exhibition of Photographs Selected From Black Photographer’s Annual Volume II (1974; Studio Museum in Harlem, New York, NY).

Dr. Michael D. Harris was also named to the list of curators and scholars, “25 Who Made A Difference,” in the fall 2001 issue of International Review of African American Art.


Napoleon Jones-Henderson
Born in 1943 in Chicago, IL
Lives and works in Roxbury, MA
AfriCOBRA Member: (founding member, 1968)

Napoleon Jones-Henderson studied at the Sorbonne Student Continuum-Student and Artists Center, Paris, France  (1963), and Northern Illinois University (1974). He graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago (BFA, 1971), and the Maryland Institute College of Art (MFA, 2005).

His work has been included in several group exhibitions, including AfriCOBRA Now: Works on Paper (2016; Hearne Fine Art Gallery, Little Rock, AR); For Whom It Stands, Too (2014; Star-Spangled Banner Flag House & Museum, Baltimore, MD); AfriCOBRA: Art and Impact (2013; The DuSable Museum of African American History, Chicago, IL); AfriCOBRA: Revolutionary Images (2007; Hampton University Museum, Hampton, VA); Living Legends (2007; King Arts Complex, Columbus, OH); and has exhibited at the Ohio Crafts Museum (2014; Columbus, OH); Museum of Afro-American Art and Culture (2006; Philadelphia, PA); Rhode Island College (2006; Providence, RI); the Maryland Federation of Artists (2005; Baltimore, MD); and the Maryland Institute College of Art (2005; Baltimore, MD). His solo show, Showin Up and Showin Out, was featured at the Roxbury Community College (2016; Roxbury, MA).

Jones-Henderson’s work has also been acquired by numerous institutional collections, including the Brooklyn Museum, DuSable Museum of African American History, the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and the Brandywine Print Archive.


James Phillips
Born 1945 in Brooklyn
Lives and works in Baltimore
AfriCOBRA Member: 1973

James Phillips studied at the Fleisher Art Memorial School, Philadelphia (1960s), the Philadelphia College of Art (1964-65), and the Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore (MFA 1998).

His solo exhibitions include Homecoming: Da Homey Comes Home: Works by James Phillips (2012; Africa House, Lynchburg, VA); Works on Paper (1996; Parish Gallery, Washington DC); The Awesome Image: Old and New Paintings by James Phillips (1995; Hampton University Museum, VA); James Phillips (1991; Harrison Museum of African American Culture, Roanoke, VA); and James Phillips, AfriCobra Abstractionist (1991; Hammond House, Atlanta).

Phillip’s work has been featured in several group exhibitions, including Outside the Lines, (2013-2014; Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Valerie Cassel Oliver, Curator, Houston, TX); AfriCobra and the Chicago Black Arts Movement (2010; Dittmar Memorial Gallery, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL); Silent Voices, Loud Echoes (2006; African American Historical and Cultural Museum, Philadelphia); Black Art, Ancestral Legacy: The African Impulse in African American Art (1989; Dallas Museum of Art); Tradition and Conflict, 1963-1973 (1985; Studio Museum in Harlem, New York); and Directions in Afro American Art (1974; Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY).

Works in are in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and University of Maryland University College.


Frank Smith
Born 1939 in Chicago
Lives and works in Rock Cave, WV
AfriCOBRA Member: 1973

Frank Smith graduated from the University of Illinois, Chicago (BFA 1958), and Howard University, Washington, D.C. (MFA 1972).

His work has been featured in several group exhibitions, including Outside the Lines, (2013-2014; Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Valerie Cassel Oliver, Curator, Houston, TX); AfriCOBRA: Art & Impact (2013, DuSable Museum of African American History, Chicago, IL); Beyond: a Symposium on the Impact of the Black Power Movement on America (2009; Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture, Washington, DC); Moments in Time (2005; Banneker-Douglass Museum, Washington, DC); African American Expressions (1995; Japan Information & Cultural Center, Washington, DC); African American Abstraction in Printmaking (1991; Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL); Since the Harlem Renaissance: Fifty Years of Afro-American Art (1985: Bucknell Center Gallery, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA); and AfriCOBRA: The First Twenty Years (1990; Nexus Contemporary Art Center, Atlanta, GA).

His work has also been acquired by numerous institutional collections, including the Brooklyn Museum, the National Museum of African American History, National Endowment for the Arts, and the U.S. Department of State.


Nelson Stevens
Born in 1938 in Brooklyn, NY
Lives and works in Owings Mills, MD
AfriCOBRA Member: (founding member, 1968)

Nelson Stevens graduated from Ohio University (BFA, 1962) and Kent State University (MFA, 1969)

His work has been included in several group exhibitions, including Soul of a Nation; Art in the Age of Black Power (2017; Tate Modern, London, UK); Constructing Identity (2017; Portland Museum of Art, Portland, OR); AfriCOBRA: The First 29 Years Traveling Exhibition (1990; Lee Hall Gallery, Clemson University, Clemson, SC); AfriCOBRA and Group Fromaje, Esthetique Universelle, Universal Aesthetics (1989; Howard University, Washington, DC); AfriCOBRA IV (1977; Afro-American Historical and Cultural Museum, Philadelphia, PA); and his work has been shown at, the Studio Museum in Harlem (1973; New York, NY); the Center for African American Art (1972; Boston, MA); the Carnegie Mellon Institute (1972; Pittsburgh, PA); and the Museum of African & African-American Art (1980; Buffalo, NY).

His early and more recent works have been collected by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Kent State University, Fisk University, Karamu House in Cleveland, the Chicago Institute of Art, and the Brooklyn Museum.


Renée Stout
Born in 1958 in Junction City, KS
Lives and works in Washington, DC
AfriCOBRA Member: 2017

Renée Stout graduated from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburg, PA (BFA 1980).

Her solo exhibitions include Funk Dreamscapes from the Invisible Parallel Universe: Renée Stout (2018; John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, WI); Journal: Book One (2007; Hemphill Fine Arts, Washington, DC); Church of the Crossroads (2006; The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL); Fragments of a Secret Life (2005; Hemphill Fine Arts, Washington, DC); Readers, Advisors, and Storefront Churches (2005; The Ogden Museum, New Orleans, LA); Dueling Dualities (1997; Steinbaum Krauss Gallery, New York, NY); Astonishment and Power: Kongo Minkisi and the Art of Renee Stout (1993; The National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC); and Chapel Gallery (1987; Mount Vernon College, Washington, DC).

Stout’s work has been included in several group exhibitions, including SO ARTICULATE: Black Women Artists Reclaim the Narrative (2008; Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA); The Book as Art: Twenty Years of Artist’s Books from The National Museum of Women in the Arts (2006; The National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC); Paper Trail: African American Works on Paper (2006; High Museum, Atlanta, GA); Drawn to Representation (2005; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC); The View From Here (2000; State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia); Postcards from Black America (1998; The De Beyerd Museum, Holland, Netherlands); Metaphysical Metaphors (1994; The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA); and Site-seeing: Travel and Tourism in Contemporary Art (1991; The Whitney Museum of American Art Downtown at Federal Reserve Plaza, New York, NY).

AfriCOBRA Photos


September 15 – October 27th, 2018

Featured Artists (year of membership)
Akili Ron Anderson (1979), Kevin Cole (2003), Adger Cowans (1978), Michael D. Harris (1979), Napoleon Jones-Henderson (founding member, 1968), James Phillips (1973), Frank Smith (1973), Nelson Stevens (founding member, 1968), and Renee Stout (2017)

artwork | artists | artists’ talk | photos | catalogue | about AFRICOBRA






AfriCOBRA 2018 (back row, left to right) Akili Ron Anderson, Adger Cowans, Nelson Stevens, Michael Harris, Wadsworth Jarrell, Gerard Williams, Frank Smith (front row, left to right) Renée Stout, Napoleon Jones-Henderson, Jae Jarrell, Kevin Cole
Photograph courtesy: Adger Cowans
AfriCOBRA (circa 1990) (standing back row, left to right) Jeff Donaldson and James Phillips, (second row, left to right) Michael Harris, Adger Cowans, Akili Ron Anderson, (front row, left to right) Wadsworth Jarrell, Napoleon Jones-Henderson, Nelson Stevens, Frank Smith
Photograph courtesy Adger Cowans
AfriCOBRA members 1989 (standing, left to right) Adger Cowans, Michael Harris, Jeff Donaldson, Murray DePillars, (on ladder) James Phillips, (seated, left to right) Napoleon Jones-Henderson, Wadsworth Jarrell, Akili Ron Anderson, Frank Smith, (on floor) Nelson Stevens.
Photograph courtesy Adger Cowans

Romare Bearden Secondary Market Out Chorus

Secondary Market

Romare Bearden (1911-1988)

Out Chorus, ed. 59/60, 1979-80
Serigraph with Hand-Colored border, 22”x29 ¾” framed
Bell-Reid Collection
Price: Contact Galerie Myrtis

Romare Bearden was strongly influenced by the works of other artists, including musicians. “Out Chorus” echoes the beats of Harlem’s thriving jazz scene, and the music’s improvisational form.

Romare Bearden (1911-1988), considered one of America’s greatest artists, was a draftsman, painter, watercolorist, and most preeminently, a collagist. He received many honors during his life, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1987 from President Reagan. Born in North Carolina, and raised in Pittsburgh and New York’s Harlem, Bearden worked in various styles, including cartoon and drawing, social genre, modernism, abstract expressionism and photo-collage. Bearden was best known for the universal themes employed in his collage paintings and prints. He found his imagery in both the everyday rituals of African American rural life in the south and urban life in the north, combining those American experiences with his personal experiences and interest in classical literature, religion, and music.

Reference: Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum

Jacob Lawrence Secondary Market On The Way

Secondary Market

Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000)

On the Way, 1990
Lithograph, 40”x29 ½” framed
Bell-Reid Collection
Price: Contact Galerie Myrtis

In his late composition, On the Way, (1990), Lawrence captures African Americans as they move through the streets with his usual stylistic attention to detail and, at the same time, telling abstract forms. At first glance it is difficult to determine what is happening in this scene, as we see flat shapes and areas of vibrant color that create a brilliant overall design. Heightening the abstract quality of the composition, Lawrence subverts traditional perspective, where bold colors occupy the foreground and paler colors occupy the background. Instead, he applies saturated and vibrant colors not only in the foreground but also in the background. Bright blue and red in the figures located in the foreground are repeated in the window and brick wall in the background. Similarly, yellow objects–boards and other equipment related to the building trade–are carried by the foreground figures and are echoed in the yellow ladder in the upper right. Thus, the tonalities in the foreground and background merge to create shifting, incongruous space, emphasizing the tensions between the picture surface and implied background, and enhancing the overall energy of the scene.

While the colorful, animated design first draws the viewer into the composition, closer examination of On the Way reveals clearly defined figures and objects. Created after the height of the Civil Rights movement, Lawrence shows men and women moving quickly through the streets, on their way to their various destinations. Implicit in this activity is the notion of the African American community on its way to a better future—with the tools for building it in their hands.

Reference: The Phillips Collection