{"id":11963,"date":"2022-03-30T14:47:52","date_gmt":"2022-03-30T14:47:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/media-archive.blackartinamerica.com\/?p=11963"},"modified":"2022-03-30T14:47:52","modified_gmt":"2022-03-30T14:47:52","slug":"charles-white-influences-exhibition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/earthexhibitions.org\/media-archive\/?p=11963","title":{"rendered":"Charles White: Influences Exhibition"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
Rockland Center for the Arts (RoCA) is proud to present for its 75th<\/sup> Anniversary year, Charles White: Influences, an <\/em>exhibition in partnership with the Gordon Center for Black Culture & Arts and the CEJJES Institute.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n Charles White: Influences<\/em> will open on April 2nd<\/sup>, 2022 in honor of the artist\u2019s birthday and will be on view through June 11, 2022.\u00a0 The exhibit will trace the trajectory of his most influential relationships: both those acolytes his work influenced through generations and those progenitors who influenced and informed his work.\u00a0 This exhibit will act as a testament to his lasting significance as an artist, activist, and educator.<\/p>\r\n <\/p>\r\n Included with the exhibition will be: a one act play by Samuel Harps; a panel discussion on the legacy of Charles White; a virtual lecture on starting an art collection of African-American artists and others; community workshop activities and additional exhibits of community artworks.\u00a0 The exhibit, play, workshops, panel discussions, and lectures will all be free of charge and open to the public.<\/p>\r\n This exhibit will demonstrate that White\u2019s commitment to social and economic justice, not only were monuments of human dignity, but emboldened his students to create impactful works of supple power and gestural eloquence to impact the local communities and extend globally.\u00a0 White\u2019s intention in art was to portray the lifestyle of his people with symbols that were both recognizable and visually relevant.\u00a0 This explains why his art is immediately understandable and accessible to all.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n In addition to the artworks of Charles White, this exhibit will also feature works and ephemera by those who carried White\u2019s lessons into their own work.\u00a0 We will follow the trajectory of White\u2019s students, exhibiting the works of artists such as Kerry James Marshall, David Hammons, as well as second generational influences of Alonzo Adams, Mequitta Ahuja, Gale Fulton Ross and Kadir Nelson.\u00a0 Third generational influences of White can be seen in works by Dionis and Jose Ortiz, Shervone Neckles, Emmanuel Massillon and Kyle Adams.<\/p>\r\n <\/p>\r\n White\u2019s influence has reached into many generations and can be seen from his students such as Kerry James Marshall but also clearly defined in even the younger more recent generations. \u00a0Alonzo Adams\u2019 Guardian<\/em> is a clear reference to White\u2019s J\u2019Accuse #1.\u00a0 The regal Guardian is also reminiscent of White\u2019s Wanted Posters with faces and hands lingering in the backgrounds.\u00a0 The Guardian protects all those who are present and hints at all those who have come before and bear witness to today.\u00a0 Adams, like White, uses his art to make statements of social and political events and atmosphere.\u00a0 His paintings, beautifully rendered, make bold statements while giving the message of knowledge as a gateway.\u00a0 Emmanuel Massillon\u2019s Double Consciousness<\/em> is the only sculpture in the exhibit. \u00a0The sculpture is a carved wood figure cut in half to represent the spirit of blackness and how African-Americans feel split between many different realities as blacks in America.\u00a0 Masks attached to the figure tell of the many different faces adopted in American society to represent the notion of what is considered appropriate behavior or customs for blacks and elevated as a survival tactic of everyday life. One of the few women in the exhibit, Gale Fulton Ross\u2019s Mother Crucifix<\/em> is a tribute to all struggling Black Mothers who raise their sons and daughters in a world that\u2019s often intolerant to skin color, their heritage and their culture.\u00a0 The youngest artist, Kyle Adams says his most important takeaway of Charles White\u2019s influence is capturing the essence of African American life through pencil while promoting positive narratives of them.\u00a0 His artwork Free <\/em>is intended to promote freedom in lives whether it be spiritually, emotionally, physically or mentally.<\/p>\r\n