Black Lives Matter art

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Black Lives Matter mural in Minneapolis, July 2020

Many artworks related to the Black Lives Matter movement have been created.[1][2][3] These works are either seen as a direct tribute to those who have died or more broadly to the movement.[4][5] Often the pieces are created in the streets as to be more publicly visible.[6] As such several attempts have been made at preserving the art created in protest on the basis of their artistic merit and cultural significance.[7][8] Increasingly, the erasure of the artwork has been a problem for preservationists.[9] As such, the artworks below represent a fraction of the works created.

Murals[]

Portland, Oregon's George Floyd mural

Say Their Names was painted in Louisville, Kentucky. In Portland, Oregon, the George Floyd mural and We Stand with You were created.

Street murals[]

Main article: List of Black Lives Matter street murals
Part of the mural reading "Black Lives Matter" painted in June 2020
The Washington, D.C. Black Lives Matter mural painted in June 2020

On June 5, 2020, during the George Floyd protests, the DC Public Works Department painted the words "Black Lives Matter" in 35-foot-tall (11 m) yellow capital letters on 16th Street NW on the north of Lafayette Square, part of President's Park near the White House, with the assistance of the MuralsDC program of the DC Department of Public Works, with the DC flag accompanying the text.[10][11][12] This would eventually cause the renaming of 16th street NW to Black Lives Matter Plaza.[13] Multiple other cities across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, subsequently painted similar murals, including Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Portland, Salt Lake City, Santa Cruz, California, and Springfield, Massachusetts.

Painting[]

In response to the 2020 killing of Breonna Taylor, artist Amy Sherald created a painted portrait simply titled Breonna Taylor. The portrait features Taylor in a turquoise dress with a cross necklace and a diamond engagement ring. Sherald created the portrait using oil paints on a 54" x 43" linen canvas. In 2021, the piece was included in a Speed Art Museum exhibition titled "Promise, Witness, Remembrance", which was curated by Allison Glenn.[14][15]

In response to the 2013 killing of Trayvon Martin, artist Nikkolas Smith created a painted portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. wearing a hoodie purposefully resembling the same hoodie donned by Trayvon Martin at the time of his death.[16]

Adrian Brandon created a series of portraits titled "Stolen",[17] each one being a Black individual who had their life taken. He chose to only paint the portraits for the same number of minutes as years each individual lived. The empty white spaces represent the life they will never be able to live.

In November 2014, visual artist and illustrator Cbabi Bayoc painted RIP Son using acrylic on a 4' x 4' panel.[18] Bayoc's art contribution was done in response to the grand jury decision to acquit officer Darren Wilson who was involved in the fatal shooting of Ferguson teen Michael Brown.[18]

Sculpture[]

A bust and statue of George Floyd were installed in New York City and Newark, New Jersey, respectively.[19][20]

A bust of Breonna Taylor was installed in Oakland, California, in 2020.[21]

A bust of John Lewis was displayed in Union Square, New York City [22]

These sculptures sometimes replace statues of controversial nature, such as a sculpture by Marc Quinn, which replaced a statue of Edward Colston in Bristol.[23] The work is called A Surge of Power, and features Jen Reid with a fist raised.[24]

Performance art[]

Performance art has been connected with the Black Lives Matter movement since the beginning, given Patrisse Cullors' ties to the movement's inception.[25]

Symbol[]

The Black Lives Matter symbol

The Black Lives Matter symbol is artwork depicting a raised fist, a universal symbol for solidarity. Its connections with the movement stems from The Black Panther Party, in which it has become embedded with anti-racist protests.[26] The raised fist symbol became the official gesture for the movement after the death of African-American teenager Michael Brown in 2014.[27]

Reception[]

The surrounding works of the Black Lives Matter movement have a majority positive public reception in the United States.[28] Despite this, several instances of art vandalism have occurred.[29][30][31][32] These have generally been regarded as hate crimes depending on the notoriety of the work.[33]

The murals found in schools have had a mixed reaction from parents, teachers, and administration depending on the work.[34][35] Questions have been raised as to whom should be creating the art from an ethnographic perspective.[36] Another source of controversy is the use of a victim's likeness in derivative art.[37]

Critical and academic reception of the art has been highly positive, prompting anthropological journalism and investigations into the artists' works.[38]

References[]

  1. ^ Krales, Amelia Holowaty (2020-07-05). "33 powerful Black Lives Matter murals". The Verge. Retrieved 2020-09-16.
  2. ^ Jacobs, Julia (2020-08-04). "The 'Black Lives Matter' Street Art That Contains Multitudes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-16.
  3. ^ Smith, Danez. "Minneapolis Street Art During and After the BLM Protests". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2020-09-16.
  4. ^ , Wikipedia, 2021-11-05, retrieved 2021-11-27
  5. ^ Magazine, Smithsonian. "How the Death of George Floyd Sparked a Street Art Movement". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  6. ^ Jacobs, Julia (2020-07-16). "The 'Black Lives Matter' Street Art That Contains Multitudes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  7. ^ Franklin, Jonathan (2021-10-02). "She guarded the Black Lives Matter memorial. Now, she's working to protect its art". NPR. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  8. ^ Calma, Justine (2020-10-21). "Protest art leaves the streets". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  9. ^ "The Defacement and Destruction of Black Lives Matter Murals". The New Yorker. 2020-11-19. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  10. ^ Austermuhle, Mark; Cheslow, Daniella (June 5, 2020). "DC Renames Intersection near White House 'Black Lives Matter Plaza' Paints 35-Foot Message on Street". DCist. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  11. ^ Barnes, Sophie; Finch, Justin (June 5, 2020). "City of DC Painting 'Black Lives Matter' on Street Near White House". Washington, DC: WRC-TV. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  12. ^ Willingham, AJ (June 5, 2020). "Washington DC Paints a Giant 'Black Lives Matter' Message on the Road to the White House". CNN. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  13. ^ Barnes, Sophia; Finch, Justin; Reporter • •, News4. "DC Ceremonially Names Street to White House After Black Lives Matter; Emblazons Name on Road". NBC4 Washington. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  14. ^ McCool, Bill (2021-05-13). "Speed Art Museum's Promise, Witness, Remembrance Gets an Assist From Design Studio Team". PRINT Magazine. Retrieved 2021-11-06.
  15. ^ Pogrebin, Robin (2021-03-07). "Amy Sherald Directs Her Breonna Taylor Painting Toward Justice". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-06.
  16. ^ "'Artivist' Nikkolas Smith Combines Art And Activism Into A Singular Superpower". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-11-06.
  17. ^ "stolen". Adrian Brandon. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  18. ^ a b Bayoc, Cbabi (2020). "RIP Son". American Ethnologist. 47 (2): 174–175. doi:10.1111/amet.12897. ISSN 1548-1425.
  19. ^ Liam Reilly. "Bronze bust of George Floyd defaced at New York City's Union Square". CNN. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  20. ^ WABC (2021-06-17). "George Floyd statue unveiled outside City Hall in Newark". ABC7 New York. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  21. ^ Kreutz, Liz (2020-12-29). "Vandalized Breonna Taylor sculpture in downtown Oakland has been stolen, artist says". ABC7 San Francisco. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  22. ^ Cascone, Sarah (2021-10-01). "An Artist's Busts of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and John Lewis Go Up in New York's Union Square—See Images Here". Artnet News. Retrieved 2021-12-15.
  23. ^ "Edward Colston statue replaced by sculpture of Black Lives Matter protester Jen Reid". the Guardian. 2020-07-15. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  24. ^ "Jen Reid: Bristol Black Lives Matter statue removed". BBC News. 2020-07-16. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  25. ^ Dunlea, Reed (2020-06-23). "Black Lives Matter Co-Founder on Building a Movement Through Art". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  26. ^ @NatGeoUK (2020-08-01). "The history of the raised fist, a global symbol of fighting oppression". National Geographic. Retrieved 2021-01-25.
  27. ^ "The meaning and history of the Black Power fist used by Black Lives Matter". inews.co.uk. 2020-06-19. Retrieved 2021-01-25.
  28. ^ Horowitz, Juliana Menasce. "Support for Black Lives Matter declined after George Floyd protests, but has remained unchanged since". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  29. ^ "A man threw paint on a sculpture of George Floyd. It's the second time the statue has been vandalized". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  30. ^ "George Floyd mural in Rochester gets vandalized". KIMT News. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  31. ^ "George Floyd mural in Minneapolis defaced with black paint". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  32. ^ "A Breonna Taylor sculpture was vandalized. Its artist says it's an "act of racist aggression."". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  33. ^ Treisman, Rachel (2021-10-28). "An actor has been charged with vandalizing a New York City statue of George Floyd". NPR. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  34. ^ Freytas-Tamura, Kimiko de (2021-10-29). "A School Mural Was Supposed to Celebrate Black Lives. Instead, It Was Destroyed". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  35. ^ Yancey-Bragg, N'dea. "A massive Black Lives Matter mural has been dedicated to George Floyd in front of his high school". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  36. ^ Hemmerich, Sj S. (2021-09-03). "Art as Activism and Allyship: Black Lives Matter Student Murals". Art Education. 74 (5): 25–31. doi:10.1080/00043125.2021.1928469. ISSN 0004-3125.
  37. ^ Payne, Ed (2015-07-16). "Michael Brown art exhibit is 'disturbing, disgusting,' father says". CNN. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  38. ^ Parikh, Shanti; Kwon, Jong Bum (May 2020). "Introduction: Still here in the afterlives". American Ethnologist. 47 (2): 110–120. doi:10.1111/amet.12884. ISSN 0094-0496.
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