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| Painting
by Ellen Knezevich There was a story which we read in Language Arts, called “Slave on the Block.” It portrayed a white couple that was fascinated by black people to such a large extent that they wanted to paint pictures of them and watch them as if they were animals in a cage. As we studied more about this bizarre fascination, I learned about how white people began to come to Harlem night clubs in hordes, just to see people with skin darker than their own perform. I imagined how this must have made the performers feel since these night clubs had once been their own. I wanted to show this feeling visually to describe the effect it had on them, and the emptiness it must have evoked inside them. For me, this was a big part of my brainstorming when deciding what to base my Harlem Renaissance project on. I chose to do a painting because I wanted to capture the emotions with colors. I feel as though a strong piece of visual artwork can bring out heartfelt emotions and carry an important point across. I was hoping I could portray a feeling of loss in the performer, for even though she is surrounded by bright colors and people, she is no longer happy doing what she does. The background colors I chose in my painting represent the spotlights which illuminated the performers. The tear on the performer’s cheek symbolized the sadness that she is feeling. I used acrylic paints because they dry quickly. The main theme of my work is self-worth and pride. The singer’s identity as a black performer in a Harlem night club is being usurped. Her dilemma is how to hold onto her identity and to continue to have a passion for music without feeling the threat of it being stolen away from her. I wanted to capture both anger and sadness in her facial expression, and not only in the obvious places (like the tear). The first thing I did when creating this piece of artwork was mount canvas on stretcher support. After I had stapled the canvas, I painted gesso on the canvas to make it tighter. Then I sketched a basic outline of the figure in charcoal pencil. Once I was satisfied, I began to paint it with acrylic paints. I wrote the poem, and then used marker to copy it on the canvas. |