Why I make Realist portraits
I wasn't always interested in realism. In the beginning, I wasn't even interested in telling my own stories. After attending Cooper Union, I could draw realistically but was captivated by my love of Africa and wanted to work in what I thought of as an African style. This detail is from one of my early pieces which illustrates a quotation from a play, The Imprisonment of Obatala, by Obotunde Ijimere. Embodying the grace of traditional African thought, Ijimere describes the power of Orisha Eshu, Yoruba counterpart of the Roman god Mercury: "Having thrown a stone today, he kills a bird of yesterday," and "Having thrown a stone yesterday, he kills a bird of today." In New Age terminology, we might say both Eshu and Mercury (deities exemplifying the potency of communication and social connection) correspond to the qualities of the mind itself as it operates through time. By its actions in the past, the present has been made manifest and by it's current exertions, we may come to understand and accept the past or mitigate the effects of what occurred then. The philosophies of our past civilizations are still valid. They're important to me. Because I want to help us remember and honor them, I referred to them in this work.
sJapanese woodcuts, with their flat areas of color, were a profound influence. In this, my first embroidered self-portrait, descriptive line may do the heavy lifting but shadows are creeping in. The drawing is less stylized and more natural than in the previous piece but the flow of line and pattern, as in woodcuts, still entertains the eye. I call it Flower, a title derived from the rose-like folds of fabric surrounding the figure. It's a discourse on personal beauty, a beauty I learned to feel when I took time to examine each of my features in the nineteen months it took to embroider this life-sized piece. We often judge ourselves harshly in a way I don't believe flowers would ever do. Flowers simply exist... naturally and beautifully.
I enjoy abstraction and non-objective art as well. Landscapes, even desolate ones, can be beautiful. To me, people are like landscapes in motion, in time and in space and, as such, are endlessly fascinating. Our physical selves, the architectures that house our spirits, sometimes give hints of our wonderful internal complexities. I mean that literally: we are wonders to behold. Art slows down the looking process and, on closer inspection, every face is interesting. Consciousness speaks without words and through art is available to the world.
When others interact with me, those interactions shine a light, not only on who they are but, by my reactions to them, I see who I am. And, if I don't like what I see, there's a choice, an opportunity, to become different. We need help to see ourselves and others clearly: help from literature, psychoanalysis, astrology, religion, wise elders, good friends, nosey neighbors and, of course, from visual art. Artists are always noticing things and telling folks what they see. Depth of understanding is my goal. I want to know what's real externally (hence my concern with realism) as well as internally -- and my fingers help my eyes understand.
I enjoy abstraction and non-objective art as well. Landscapes, even desolate ones, can be beautiful. To me, people are like landscapes in motion, in time and in space and, as such, are endlessly fascinating. Our physical selves, the architectures that house our spirits, sometimes give hints of our wonderful internal complexities. I mean that literally: we are wonders to behold. Art slows down the looking process and, on closer inspection, every face is interesting. Consciousness speaks without words and through art is available to the world.
When others interact with me, those interactions shine a light, not only on who they are but, by my reactions to them, I see who I am. And, if I don't like what I see, there's a choice, an opportunity, to become different. We need help to see ourselves and others clearly: help from literature, psychoanalysis, astrology, religion, wise elders, good friends, nosey neighbors and, of course, from visual art. Artists are always noticing things and telling folks what they see. Depth of understanding is my goal. I want to know what's real externally (hence my concern with realism) as well as internally -- and my fingers help my eyes understand.