Gallery Response - Andy Liu

Black on Black, on Black, on Black, on Black, on Black, on Black (2020)

2nd Degree Burn (2020)

 

Visiting Dr. Ellis-Williams’ solo exhibition was a great visit and there were many pieces that caught my attention in the space. As a young and learning artist, I first found myself first admiring the pieces for their physical features and asking the question of “How do you do that?”, but as I continued to walk around I started to feel the significant emotions behind the pieces. One of the pieces that really stuck out to me was Black on Black, on Black, on Black, on Black, on Black, on Black (2020). I was first drawn to the big canvas coated in a different shade of black as it was one of the most standout pieces of the collection as it was unlike any other piece. Upon first impression, you would just think that it’s merely a canvas that is just covered in black over and over again, but with deeper inspection, I realize the significant emotions and turmoil that this piece represents. The different coats of black are the different layers of protection that black women have to protect themselves with in order to survive in the patriarchal world that we live in. Bell Hooks describes patriarchy as a “political-social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak and to maintain that dominance through various forms of psychological terrorism and violence.” This system of patriarchy has been ingrained into our psyche since the day we are born, and this system preys on women. Furthermore, I interpreted the title of this piece more than just a description of the composition, but also a take on black on black issues and how the media often sensationalizes of black on black crime, and instigating and pitting black people against themselves, which is why they feel the need to protect themselves with the different coats of protective layers. This piece sheds important light on the experience of black women in America and how unforgiving the system of patriarchy is, where the system will eat you up and spit you out at its own convenience.

The capitalistic society that we live in likes to prey on the insecurities of women and sell them products in order for them to buy back their self-confidence. As John Berger explains “She is meant to imagine herself transformed by the product into an object of envy for others, an envy which will then justify her loving herself. One could put this another way: the publicity image steals her love of herself as she is, and offers it back to her for the price of the product.” Dr. Ellis William’s piece titled 2nd Degree Burn takes me back to that exact concept. The piece is made of mixed media on canvas that can be described as many different textures of materials such as bubble wrap, stones, and paint, with a predominantly red composition. The imagery of this piece definitely is reminiscent of the title of 2nd Degree Burn as it resembles the skin of a burn victim and the stones are similar to the scabbing and drying of the blood of a gaping wound. The red stones on the canvas also remind me of the different types of jewelry and gemstones that people buy to wear, and it reminds me of the insecurities we try to mask by buying different types of jewelry and materialistic goods that do not inherently improve the qualities of our lives but provide the facade that our lives are better than the next person, even when it isn’t. Women particularly fall victim to this concept as there is a huge market that specifically targets the pockets of women and tries to get them to purchase cosmetic products that sell them back the love for themselves. Tying it back to the concept of the burn, I believe that society burns people by taking away their self-confidence and love for themselves through various ways of advertising and marketing in order to sell products that are promoted to heal the burn, but in reality merely just makes the wound even bigger. 

There is no question that Dr. Ellis-William’s work is activist(ism), as her work sheds very important light on the issues that are prevalent today not only amongst black women but for our society as a whole. Kimberly Drew said “Protest is way more complicated than communicating rage”, and Dr. Ellis-William’s work expresses the many experiences that she, her family, and ancestors endured and channels the rage from her pain in a potent and powerful way through her works that raises awareness for the issues that are prevalent in our society today.

Selfie

Here's a self portrait that I painted that was inspired by the exhibition. These last few years had definitely taken a toll on my mental and physical health to the point where my anxiety has been at an all time high. With the string of Asian attacks happening in the last few years and with the most recent lost of Christina Yuna Lee, I honestly don't know how to feel or where to begin to explain it. Dr. Ellis-William's exhibition inspired me to paint and to express my experiences onto a canvas, and this painting I did is my way of expressing this feeling that I've been having lately.