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Concerto in Black and Blue

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David Hammons, Flying Carpet, 1990 image source David Hammons often uses his art as a commentary on racial stereotypes so it’s not surprising that when critics viewed his Concerto in Black and Blue they were quick to offer up the description of African American art. The problem with the way that critics reacted to this installation was not that they identified it as such, but that they then ironically used racial stereotypes to further describe the installation highlighting the point the artist was making. In the introductory chapter of How to See a Work of Art in Total Darkness, Darby English uses an art installation by David Hammons to illustrate the problems black artists face when critics refuse to see past racial stereotypes. Concerto in Black and Blue was a 2002 installation that consisted of nothing more than an empty gallery, some blue pen lights, and the viewers themselves. The idea was that the viewers became the art, and that the definition of blackness lies within the prec...
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Positive Images

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Jill Posener’s, series ‘ Dirty Girls Guide to London' (1987), ( image source ) In Framing the Questions: Positive Imaging and Scarcity in Lesbian Photographs, Jan Zita Grover discusses how gatekeeping positive images in lesbian photography is central to keeping the already “scarce” images from creating negative stereotypes in a marginalized subculture, but that it comes at the expense of identiy loss and exclusion within the subculture.(1) Grover begins her argument by pointing out that photographs aren’t really meant to depict reality to begin with. Most often, photographs are an idealized version of reality that exaggerates its representation and “naturalise(s) the unnatural.” Commonly, photos are trying to sell us something whether it be a product or an ideal, and by thinking of photographs in this context it would follow that lesbian photography should be no different. What matters here is not the gatekeeping, but that lesbians are being represented. It is important that the r...
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Indigenous Epistemologies

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 Keith Braveheart image source   “There is no Lakota Word for Art. I am only doing what I was born to do.” (1) These are the words of Keith Braveheart, the artist featured above. Words that seem to highlight one of the main points of this week's author Margaret Kovach in her article “Indigenous Methodologies Characteristic, Conversations, and Contexts.” Kovach speaks on the importance of language, ritual and metaphysics in the attempt to understand indigenous methods of research and knowledge. The colonization of the Americas created a displacement from the land, language, and culture for many indigenous people. For some, like Kovach, this has created a duality of Western and indigenous culture that is difficult to untangle so by studying indigenous epistemologies Kovach hopes to better understand her Plains Cree roots. (2) Indigenous epistemologies are like a choreographed dance between the cosmos and the people. It is important to remember that the epistemologies differ from...
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Phenomenology

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Mural by Denver artist, Thomas “Detour” Evans ( image source ) This artwork is having an effect on you. It has had an effect on me, and we are affecting the artwork. The model posing in front of the mural has been affected and so has the artist. This is my understanding of phenomenology, the study of structures of experience, or conscioiusness. The essay Meaning, Identity, Embodiment The Uses of Merleau-Ponty’s Phenomenology in Art History by Amerlia Jones painstakingly explains the relationships of artist, viewer, and subject through the philosophical idea of phenomenology. There is a reciprocal relationship between the object (in this case subject), viewer, and artist. We have, by viewing this piece of art, had an emotional response that is defined by our past experiences and we are projecting those feelings towards this piece of art. The artist has purposely tried to communicate his own viewpoint that is informed by his own life experience. I have, by copying and pasting, had an ef...
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Difference

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Surname Viet, Given Name Nam , still by Trinh T Minh-ha, 1989, ( image source )   Tokenism is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as the policy or practice of making only a symbolic effort (as to desegregate). We cannot expect people of other nationalities, races, sexual orientation, or any other minority group to feel included if the intentions behind an invitation are simply to avoid criticism. The company/group should be making an effort to include minorities by building relationships, offering equal resources, and making sure the people feel valued. Out of all the articles I read on tokenism the issue that stood out most was that companies often hire minorities to appear diverse but do nothing to actually change policy. One woman shared her experience of being introduced to diverse clients but was otherwise ignored, asked to work longer hours than everyone else, and was even asked to straighten her hair to meet company standards. It shouldn’t surprise me at this point, bu...
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Death of the Author

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Keith Haring and William S Burroughs, “APOCALYPSE” Plate two ( image source ) The " Death of the Author" by Roland Barthes is a concept that hinges on the idea that nothing is original. Barthes believed that the magic happened with the reader and his/her/their experience. His essay is mostly a critique on classical criticism. He believed that critics had an obsessive focus on the author and his/her/their biography rather than the analysis of the text.  He talks about Mallarme and his theory that the author is nothing more than a medium through which language speaks. Barthes further describes text as a “multidimensional space in which a variety of writings, none of them original, blend and clash.” Again, this is the idea that texts are merely an amalgamation of words that already exist. He believed that all writing was a regurgitation of something that came before therefore "Authorship" was not important.  While this theory may seem a little depressing and somewhat ...
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The Oppositional Gaze

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Grace Jones by Robert Mapplethorpe ( image source ) The Oppositional Gaze, a 1992 essay by bell hooks, is an insightful look into the perspective of a black female with regards to mainstream cinema. The lack of realistic representation combined with a history of oppression has created a “rebellious desire” to look within the black female psyche. Hooks defines ‘the oppositional gaze’ as this rebellious act of looking which empowers the black female to see with a critical eye. She further emphasizes that the critical eye is how the black female finds pleasure in film. Historically, black people have not been allowed to freely gaze at white people, and punishing them for looking didn’t end with slavery. This repression not only created an overwhelming desire to look, but it also created an attitude of defiance amongst the oppressed. In cinema, to be able to look upon the oppressor and not feel any sort of relationship but rather an attitude of resistance that unites the oppressed to each ...
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