Ali and Buckley, 1968
10:03 “I don’t doubt your sincerity”
20:19, “being hard on people like you...you blue-eyed, blond-headed dogs."
49:38, “I can’t think of any...No I can’t, can you?”
49:46, “You should be ashamed of yourself."
Oil on Arches Oil Paper - 22'' x 30’’ each, 2019-2020
Linked
Portraits
A series of paired portraits that investigate our national history obsessed with constructing a color line to separate Americans when there is another historical reality - that we are an amalgamated and intertwined people. The paintings are based on specific moments where expressions and body language show thinking and positioning.
As I bounce between the images, comparing them, seeing them peripherally, the focus is on the spaces in and around Ali and Buckley, The negative space becomes a metaphor for the societal forces that push us into these delineated positions. Ali and Buckley, 1968 is based on a historic conversation on Firing Line With William F. Buckley Jr. that brings to light beautiful and outrageous moments of righteous clarity, wanton blindness and the sting of the familiar linked history.
Carolyn Bryant and Mamie Till-Mobley
Essie Mae Washington-Williams and Strom Thurmond
"She's your daughter too you know," Oil on canvas - 20'' x 20’’ each, 2019-2020
