Black History

Artist Raymond Saunders was educated at prestigious schools in Pennsylvania and created much of his work there, including “Untitled” (1991), which is on display at the Columbia Museum of Art. The mixed media on paper combines forms, materials, colors, and surfaces. A paintbrush is attached to the surface and is highlighted by broad brushes of black paint, crayon, and calligraphic script. “I use what’s visually around me,” said Saunders from his home in Oakland, Calif., where he teaches at the California College of the Arts. “I’m trying to say something about definition. My art is about what I make as opposed to what I think about what I should make. It’s really about beauty.”

Richard J. Watson says this about his “Do Lord, Remember Me,” 2003, paint on paper collage: “Since my adolescent days, I have witnessed an atmosphere of urban violence that has left in its wake a significant number of murdered children, mostly by gunfire. They are the ones who are robbed of their future, denied the joy of ‘remembering when’ and cheated out of summer nights when the fireflies dance and lovers embrace.” Based in Philadelphia, Watson includes many found objects and photographs in his collage.

“I smile at this painting,” M’lilian Scott, 27, a Clemson graduate student and intern architect/graphic designer said of James Brantley’s oil on canvass “Vanessa’s Lips,” painted in 1989: “I seem have something in common with the so-named ‘Vanessa’ — the prominence of her lips as a facial feature. I think the painting’s name, ‘Vanessa’s Lips,’ states the subtlety in what expresses the Afrocentricity of the subject. The first thing a person notices are the colors of the Pan-African flag, the prominent red (symbolizing blood that unites ancestry and sacrifice), green (for the wealth of the land), and black (representing the people of color who make up the continent). But the painter’s focus was Vanessa’s lips, which I imagine to be a rich symbol of sensuality and expression of the African- American woman in the picture.”

Edward Hughes’ created his mixed media on paper with fabric doll work ‘Untitled’ in 1981. “This picture has a lot of positive images, such as the cross (Jesus died for our sins), the heart (Jesus Loves us), the fish (Jesus supplies our needs) the arrow (We will rise with Him on that glorious day),” said Yolanda Brown, who works as a caregiver.

"Fantastic color!," Chris Fauntleroy said of the bright hues of Romare Bearden's "The Piano Lesson (Homage to Mary Lou on the opening night of The Chemistry of Color. The color lithograph on paper created in 1983 "has dimension ... interesting lines and patterns that seem to lay atop one another. But the color!" Fauntleroy is a retired photographer and artist.

“Donald Camp is a new one to me,” said Joyce Fauntleroy, a retired high school administrator with stints in New York and New Jersey who moved with her husband to Columbia six years ago. Fauntleroy said she sees “a human presence and the depth of darkness” in Camp’s work “Bath,” created in 1987.

James Atkins was born in Bishopville and has used painting as a way to ex- plore his rich family history. The 71-year-old continues to paint, and, although he now lives in Philadelphia, he still visits family members in South Carolina and plans to attend the Columbia Museum of Art show. Atkins says that “Church Wait” (1987), is just one snippet of life he experi- enced growing up — women in ribboned hats waiting in church for the sermon to begin. “It is assembled from a storehouse of gathered memories,” he said.

Sharon Lynn, an engineer in Columbia for SCE&G, attended the opening of “The Chemistry of Color” and was especially drawn to “Two on the Sofa,” 1988 and 1991, an acrylic, metal, corrugated cardboard, and paper piece by Gregory W. Coates. “It’s different. I like the textures. The layers give a 3-D effect ... depth.”

“I’m drawn to the fact that so many different things are going on in this quilt,” Johnathan Kirkwood, a building manager with BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, said about Faith Ringold’s piece “Tar Beach,” created in 1990. “I can envision where it is æ. . . put myself into the scene.” The artist “captured many different parts of that community.”

Artist Nannette Acker Clark created “Time and Time Again” in 1989. It is paint on paper, wood and wire mounted on board. “During this time I was doing a series of pieces that were based on textiles from many countries,” Clark said. “I was particularly interested in strip weaving, which has its origins in the west African textiles of Ghana and Nigeria. I concentrated on the strip cloths woven by the Ashanti people of Ghana (these are also known as kente cloths). I was struck by the use of patterns woven in strips that were assembled in such a way that the patterns and colors interplayed and bounced off of each other and appeared to be put together in a random way. Another area of textiles that also fascinated me was the mud cloths of Mali that are woven first and then printed with patterns over the strips. I wanted to see how they worked as individual pieces when separated.”

Artist John E. Dowell Jr., who teaches at Temple University in Philadelphia, was on hand to speak at the opening Feb. 4 of the exhibit at the art museum. Dowell, who also is a musician, says he sees his artistic expression as a visual interpretation of music and poetry. “I want you to feel the distance . . . the juxtaposition . . . the sense of time. I became aware that in jazz music, it was not just the notes but the intervals between them that became important. As a result, my drawings were not just about making a mark but rather thinking about the space that the mark makes.” “Del Mar,” painted in 1990, is watercolor and ink on paper.

April Kelly, an environmental safety supervisor with SCE&G especially enjoyed Syd Carpenter's "Check Your Sources" (1990) for its interesting perspective on creation: fire, water, and air. She spent a good deal of time evaluating the ceramic sculpture mounted on wood to decipher which aspects represented which parts of creation. "I think the twirling part is water, then wind, then the last part looks like lava flowing, so that would be the fire," Kelly said.

Seventy-year-old Beverly Buchanan grew up in Orangeburg accompanying her father, who was dean of the Department of Agriculture at S.C. State College, when he visited various farms to evaluate students’ crops. Through this, she became fascinated with aging and dilapidated structures. She has expressed this all her life in her art, both paintings and sculptures. "S.C. House near Bull Swamp School" (1989-1995) is dear to her in that her mother taught at the school.

Dr. Scott Trafton, associate professor of English and African American Studies in the Department of English at the University of South Carolina, comments on Alan L. Edmunds "MLK's Humanity of Man," 2001,: "I love the way this piece uses repetition as a formal principle, as well as the way the image is layered and distressed - all of this adds to the meaning of its message, that Dr. King's life was one of continual perseverance over lifelong struggle. The symbolism is a bit heavy-handed for me, frankly, but, still, how can you go wrong with Dr. King?"

Artist John McDaniel's "Bush Life," 1990, is a large acrylic on paper expression of a ritual ceremony of the Candomble religion he experienced while visiting the Cain Forest in Bahia, Brazil. Dentist Benetta Bell of Columbia was drawn to the intensity of the piece. "The broad strokes are very arresting. I'm attracted to more modern pieces such as these. The color ... the abstractness."

"Spontaneous Accord," 1991, evolved after artist Moe Brooker of Philadelphia began studying the free expression of graffiti and the improvisational rhythms of jazz. He explained on the opening night of "The Chemistry of Color" exhibit, that he began 40 years ago as a realist painter but soon realized that others in the African-American community were already successful as realists. Because he has always been attracted to vivid colors, he began evaluating urban culture. "I investigated shapes, a sense of line, plane structures." Brooker, whose parents grew up in Allendale, S.C., says that the bright colors of spring and images such as women in hats sitting in church have always fascinated him. "I like to create a sense of perspective within abstraction."

“I expected to see only oil paintings or art on canvas in this exhibit,” said Keicha Barnes, a guidance counselor at A.C. Flora High School, on the opening night of The Chemistry of Color. “I was struck by the form of this piece.” Charles Searles’ “New Depths,” 1989, is a 55-inch-by-80-inch acrylic on gessoed wood with hinges. “The colors and the shapes really grab your attention,” Barnes said.

'Long Island Sound': “The colors pop off the canvas,” says April Kelly, an environmental safety supervisor with S.C. Electric and Gas. Kelly took in the 64½--inch by 40-inch oil stick and pastel on canvas during the opening of the Chemistry of Color. She said she enjoys visiting the shore and felt a connection with the painting “Long Island Sound,” 1989, by Nanette Carter. “It looks like the ocean with sea creatures swimming in it ... so vivid and bright."

Design engineer Daryl Atkins says that "Oasis," 1989, by artist Benny Andrews, presents a "bright, dry atmosphere, but one that is beautiful, bright, tasteful and exciting." The oil and mixed-media collage on canvas is drawn from the artist's imagination and is part of the "America" series of vast landscapes. "I'm much more interested in modern art," says Atkins. "The colors in this piece stand out to me. It's relaxing, easy-going ... something I could live with." - Compiled by Deena Bouknight

Artist Willie Birch says, about his piece "A Farewell Feast" 1998: "It's about two people going to Egypt on vacation and a group of friends getting together to give them a dinner party. This work is from my folkloric series, gouache on paper with pa- pier mache relief frame." When Debra Green, who analyzes patient samples in the laboratory at Palmetto Health Baptist, viewed the piece during the opening of The Chemistry of Color, she commented: "This is what I see as the universe . . . so beautiful. Everyone around the table is communicating. I love the intensity of the color, the details and the diversity. It’s very multicultural. It shows the world sitting down at a feast with no worries in the world." — Compiled by Deena Bouknight

John Lane, composer and associate senior vice president at Allen University, says of “Images of Labor” (1980): “Street level, everyone in two flat dimensions, yet some of their objects are in three, in a palette of basic vertical color. In signature fashion, Jacob Lawrence best explicates the complexity of living through a disturbing economy of simplicity. No shadows, no two people communing with one another; on the street, but with no sidewalk, thus floating feet all in motion, meaning no grounding, no stasis, no rest, and therefore a transience that strips away any connection to, anchoring to or ownership of the moment, except to labor in it. And that overzealously on a parlous ladder(!) Most faces are faceless. The remainder are emotionless. Sentiment cannot be discerned from their brown or purple dermis, nor from their ‘hieroglyphic eye,’ only from body postures, angles and contortions. It’s nonpersonalizing and nearly dehumanizing. Lawrence makes an unavoidable commentary of the black urban life he witnessed.”

M'lilian Scott, a 27-year-old graduate student and intern architect/graphic designer feels that materiality and medium is always important in art. She says, "In Barbara Bullock's "Animal Healer" 1990, she uses a variety of colors and materials - multi-textured paper and brilliant colored feathers to create a rich and diverse piece. This adds a third dimension to the work of art and causes the viewer to use an additional one of its senses, touch, as well as the typical sight. On an interpretive level, I see positive light shining on what is stereotypically seen as negative. African tribalism is usually depicted as uncivilized. However, this particular piece gives it positive connotation in featuring a nurturing character in tribal dress, caring and healing the animals shown." — Compiled by Deena Bouknight

70-year-old Beverly Buchanan grew up in Orangeburg accompanying her father, who was dean of the Department of Agriculture at South Carolina State College, when he visited various farms to evaluate students' crops. Through this, she became fascinated with aging and dilapidated structures. She has expressed this all her life in her art, both paintings and sculptures. "S.C. House near Bull Swamp School" 1989-1995 is dear to her in that her mother taught at the school. "Structures in their undoing have fascinated me," she says from her home in Ann Arbor, Mich. "That has never left me. Remembering the look and feel of structures has been a strong focus in my drawings and sculptures. My vision and interest shifted to the reality of current places and their surrounding landscape. The house and its yard and the road behind and across. Capturing the essence and something of the look and feel of now versus then is not easy. I want to continue to develop this idea now of memory versus reality." — Compiled by Deena Bouknight

Joscelyn Jones, a 32-year-old Columbia art teacher at Edward E. Taylor Elementary School, on artist William T. Williams' "Blue Monk" (1991): "This is a very exciting and festive piece. I am reminded of someone unknowingly walking in on their surprise birthday party. I see birthday hats and confetti. What stands out to me most is the artist's use of the elements and principles of design as I see every one of them evident in this piece. Most interesting is the use of line. Diagonal and curved lines coupled with the strategic use of color and value; occupy your eyes with movement continually guiding you around the piece. Truly intriguing!!"

Yolanda Brown, a nursing school student and a caregiver for a 91-year-old woman in Columbia, says that the woman in “Other Woman Blues,” (1952 and 1994) by Calvin Burnett, “reminds me of my aunt, sitting at the table, contemplating on something very serious. I love it!”

"When I first saw the piece, I noticed the eye and the semblance of a crown upon it. The praying hands plead to this royal eye ... Very intense piece ... very relatable," said Nikkiya Brooks about Betye Saar's "The Long Memory" (1998). Brooks is in the children's program director at St. Lawrence Place in Columbia.

In viewing Johnson’s “Fishing Boats,” I am reminded of a transported way over a troubled situation; which ironically alludes to the History of African Americans and their Art forms. It is no secret that the African-American History is one of pain, toil, tragedy and injustice. However, what makes it such a great story, are the exercises—rowing, shall we say, that pulled us through. This involved strength, determination, faith, and using various outlets of expression that allowed us to become relatively triumphant in gaining socio-economic equality, be they Art, Music, Religion, Education, et cetera. And so, with the dreary colors and shadowy detail of Johnson’s painting, I see a journey, but also a dawning of a bright future through a dim present, the promise of a destination. - M’lilian Scott, 27, Columbia, SC / Clemson Graduate Student/Intern Architect

"I love this piece," says Dr. Scott Trafton, 41, a professor of African-American Studies at the University of South Carolina, of Yvonne Pickering Carter's "Water Series #30" (1985). "It's a collage, and, for me, collage has always been a metaphor for the African American experience - bits and pieces of many different things combined together to form one complex and beautiful whole. Plus the colors, the composition, the balance of painted and negative space - it's great!"