Rae Chardonnay

Charles’ art is like an architectural depiction of truth for me.  With such evocative work, White is one of my favorite visual artists.

“Paint is the only weapon that I have … to fight what I resent. If I could write, I would write about it. If I could talk, I would talk about it. Since I paint,
I must paint about it.”

- Charles Wilbert White

Charles Wilbert White became an artist of his people and also their advocate. But, in doing so, he became an advocate of the universality of humanity. He always insisted upon expressing the dignity of the individual and respect for human beings - not some caricature imposed by hostile forces. As a spiritual product, perhaps unconsciously, of two races and two environments, he would reflect upon the fact that his grandfather was a slave in Mississippi and that his mother had lived most of her life in the South where little had changed from her father’s era.

To look upon his drawings, paintings and prints is to be gripped by his search for essential truths in the daily life and beauty of his subjects. A comforting insight into the meaning of existence, man’s aspirations and sorrows, his inner spirit — but above all — his dignity form the core of Charles White’s love affair with life. And that is the tribute he paid to the men, women and children whom he depicted in his works.

…Things I Think Are Beautiful…

The Black Vernacular::Dwayne Rogers

Tell us about the name of the project.

The name of the project, The Black Vernacular, is quite layered.  Vernacular in its primary sense is a subset, a dialect, of a larger language, but vernacular also means common or everyday.  Vernacular also is a genre of photography, a way to talk about “snapshots” or amateur photography in the context of art.  The name Vernacular Photography is an acknowledgement of the fact that the photographs taken every day by non-professional photographers are worthy of consideration as art objects.  (Implicitly the phrase asks what is art and who makes it.  It’s a step in the direction of obliterating the false boundaries between “high” and “low” art.)  As a subject for study, vernacular photography, is an examination of the impulses that lead people to take pictures.  It’s also a study of the aesthetics of those photographs as they are informed by the camera equipment widely available at that time, who could afford to own a camera or have a picture taken and who and what people think is worthy of a picture.  Vernacular photography is very rich.  It’s a lens on available technology, popular aesthetics and class –among other things.  I also like that the name of the project flips the negativity surrounding the expression ‘the black vernacular’.

Why is it important to create an archive of African American ancestors?

I like to think of it as a living document rather than an archive.  But why African American ancestors?  Simple.  Much of the history of black people, particularly our intimate history as shown in The Black Vernacular, is still unseen and unexplored.  There aren’t a lot of engaging stories about Black people being told.  And in my opinion too many contemporary Black artists, for lack of better ideas, engage stereotypes and their deconstruction as their subject matter. I want to put us at the center of a narrative which reflects the fullness of the lives we lead.

Courtesy of okayplayer.com

Artist interpretations of Queen Nina