A BRILLIANT BLUE HUE
In all essence the sky is not always a beautiful, pristine hue. The blue is not always pure. Lacking streaks of fluff or gruff grey puffs. Often times in my windowpane is a growing grey depth. But the value of blue in its historical sense, spiritual sense and conceptual mystique can hardly be rivaled. The expanse of a blue sky brings hope and the notion of an ever-present sun. That sun provided photosynthesis and that life sustaining – life promoting process is representative of the best life has to offer. Pure energy transmission. And with the blue having such a vast ownership over the viewers eye I wanted to evoke a sense of energetic clarity so as to catalyze a fertile mind’s eye that would accept the dazzle and desperation of the other three hues. Color is vibration. Energy is vibration. Everything is communicating something. By harnessing that energy and compelling emotion (energy in motion) the pain that is present in the paint can be absorbed. And it is my hope that it will cause change.
A Glimmer of Greatness
Certainly, we see the royal rhino in its dazzling dusky color and even an albino remix at times. But the golden glow I employed was intentional. To represent the link between the Motherland, its mineral resources, precious metals and stones, The Big Five, Hueman bodies and minds, and pride. All of those things have been mined and stripped from the land and those who lived on it. A continuous raping and pillaging of the planet and its people of the Afrikan continent. The glory and progress that we see brought to all of the world by ancient Afrikan civilizations is innumerable. We only see the demise and degradation of the Black Skinned. The brilliance that once was can be once again. Gold never rusts!
Blush Bruises
We have all seen the color of skin when thumped and pummeled by a brute. A thug. A gangster. A uniformed person apart of a larger entity.
We have all seen Huey’s face, Rodney K.
Sandra Bland and Breonna…. Damn.
I am more than sad and the swollen exterior of my peers shows that the oppressors deem us as inferiors.
Often bruises heal but these have been repeatedly renewed. So, the sinew is now midnight blue.
How long can one stand… How much impunity can one species witness as their siblings remain synonymous to victims.
Regardless of the hashtags and black flags our faces keep on dripping.
Backs turned when our mouths are heard. Espousers turn to cowards when the powers that be use malice.
Runneth over once was my chalice but now I receive rubber poundings to both cheeks.
Obsidian Symbology
The beauty of Black and the misunderstood art and culture of Afrika needed to be expressed loud and clear. The intricate line work draws the viewers in to enjoy the adornments and ponder the possibilities. Displayed furthermore upon one of The Big Five. Strategically placed concepts span the shimmering silhouette. In synergistic fashion I attempt to convey the futile efforts of the BIPOC world to cover up the shame of the psychosocial and even physical traumas of the “Blush Bruises”. The message is made clear to all that there is and always has been more beauty to this now perceived detained and conditioned beast. From Choloani to Mandingo the facts are misconstrued. Misinterpreted. Misrepresented. All of which are vast misfortunes to the rest of the Planet and its People.