Black Lives Matter art

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Black Lives Matter mural in Minneapolis, July 2020

Many artworks related to the Black Lives Matter movement have been created.[1][2][3] These works are either seen as a direct tribute to those who have died or more broadly to the movement.[4][5] Often the pieces are created in the streets as to be more publicly visible.[6] As such several attempts have been made at preserving the art created in protest on the basis of their artistic merit and cultural significance.[7][8] Increasingly, the erasure of the artwork has been a problem for preservationists.[9] As such, the artworks below represent a fraction of the works created.

Murals[edit]

Say Their Names was painted in Louisville, Kentucky. In Portland, Oregon, the George Floyd mural and We Stand with You were created.

Street murals[edit]

Main article: List of Black Lives Matter street murals
Part of the mural reading "Black Lives Matter" painted in June 2020
The Washington, D.C. Black Lives Matter mural painted in June 2020

On June 5, 2020, during the George Floyd protests, the DC Public Works Department painted the words "Black Lives Matter" in 35-foot-tall (11 m) yellow capital letters on 16th Street NW on the north of Lafayette Square, part of President's Park near the White House, with the assistance of the MuralsDC program of the DC Department of Public Works, with the DC flag accompanying the text.[10][11][12] This would eventually cause the renaming of 16th street NW to Black Lives Matter Plaza.[13] Multiple other cities across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, subsequently painted similar murals, including Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Portland, Salt Lake City, Santa Cruz, California, and Springfield, Massachusetts.

Painting[edit]

In response to the 2020 killing of Breonna Taylor, artist Amy Sherald created a painted portrait simply titled Breonna Taylor. The portrait features Taylor in a turquoise dress with a cross necklace and a diamond engagement ring. Sherald created the portrait using oil paints on a 54" x 43" linen canvas. In 2021, the piece was included in a Speed Art Museum exhibition titled "Promise, Witness, Remembrance", which was curated by Allison Glenn.[14][15]

In response to the 2013 killing of Trayvon Martin, artist Nikkolas Smith created a painted portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. wearing a hoodie purposefully resembling the same hoodie donned by Trayvon Martin at the time of his death.[16]

Adrian Brandon created a series of portraits titled "Stolen",[17] each one being a Black individual who had their life taken. He chose to only paint the portraits for the same number of minutes as years each individual lived. The empty white spaces represent the life they will never be able to live.

In November 2014, visual artist and illustrator Cbabi Bayoc painted RIP Son using acrylic on a 4-by-4-foot (1.2 m × 1.2 m) panel.[18] Bayoc's art contribution was done in response to the grand jury decision to acquit officer Darren Wilson who was involved in the fatal shooting of Ferguson teen Michael Brown.[18]

Sculpture[edit]

A bust and statue of George Floyd were installed in New York City and Newark, New Jersey, respectively.[19][20]

A bust of Breonna Taylor was installed in Oakland, California, in 2020.[21] A bust of John Lewis was displayed in Union Square, New York City.[22]

These sculptures sometimes replace statues of controversial nature, such as a sculpture by Marc Quinn, which replaced a statue of Edward Colston in Bristol.[23] The work is called A Surge of Power, and features Jen Reid with a fist raised.[24]

Performance art[edit]

Performance art has been connected with the Black Lives Matter movement since the beginning, given Patrisse Cullors' ties to the movement's inception.[25]

Symbol[edit]

The Black Lives Matter symbol

The Black Lives Matter symbol is artwork depicting a raised fist, a universal symbol for solidarity. Its connections with the movement stems from The Black Panther Party, in which it has become embedded with anti-racist protests.[26] The raised fist symbol became the official gesture for the movement after the shooting of Michael Brown, an African-American teenager, in 2014.[27]

Reception[edit]

The surrounding works of the Black Lives Matter movement have a majority positive public reception in the United States.[28] Despite this, several instances of art vandalism have occurred.[29][30][31][32] These have generally been regarded as hate crimes depending on the notoriety of the work.[33]

The murals found in schools have had a mixed reaction from parents, teachers, and administration depending on the work.[34][35] Questions have been raised as to whom should be creating the art from an ethnographic perspective.[36] Another source of controversy is the use of a victim's likeness in derivative art.[37]

Critical and academic reception of the art has been highly positive, prompting anthropological journalism and investigations into the artists' works.[38]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Krales, Amelia Holowaty (July 5, 2020). "33 powerful Black Lives Matter murals". The Verge. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  2. ^ Jacobs, Julia (August 4, 2020). "The 'Black Lives Matter' Street Art That Contains Multitudes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  3. ^ Smith, Danez (August 24, 2020). "Minneapolis Street Art During and After the BLM Protests". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  4. ^ "List of Black Lives Matter street murals", Wikipedia, November 5, 2021, archived from the original on February 24, 2023, retrieved November 27, 2021
  5. ^ "How the Death of George Floyd Sparked a Street Art Movement". Smithsonian Magazine. Archived from the original on December 25, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  6. ^ Jacobs, Julia (July 16, 2020). "The 'Black Lives Matter' Street Art That Contains Multitudes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 16, 2020. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  7. ^ Franklin, Jonathan (October 2, 2021). "She guarded the Black Lives Matter memorial. Now, she's working to protect its art". NPR. Archived from the original on December 23, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  8. ^ Calma, Justine (October 21, 2020). "Protest art leaves the streets". The Verge. Archived from the original on December 10, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  9. ^ "The Defacement and Destruction of Black Lives Matter Murals". The New Yorker. November 19, 2020. Archived from the original on August 1, 2022. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  10. ^ Austermuhle, Mark; Cheslow, Daniella (June 5, 2020). "DC Renames Intersection near White House 'Black Lives Matter Plaza' Paints 35-Foot Message on Street". DCist. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  11. ^ Barnes, Sophie; Finch, Justin (June 5, 2020). "City of DC Painting 'Black Lives Matter' on Street Near White House". Washington, DC: WRC-TV. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  12. ^ Willingham, AJ (June 5, 2020). "Washington DC Paints a Giant 'Black Lives Matter' Message on the Road to the White House". CNN. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  13. ^ Barnes, Sophia; Finch, Justin; Reporter • •, News4. "DC Ceremonially Names Street to White House After Black Lives Matter; Emblazons Name on Road". NBC4 Washington. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ McCool, Bill (May 13, 2021). "Speed Art Museum's Promise, Witness, Remembrance Gets an Assist From Design Studio Team". PRINT Magazine. Archived from the original on December 3, 2022. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
  15. ^ Pogrebin, Robin (March 7, 2021). "Amy Sherald Directs Her Breonna Taylor Painting Toward Justice". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 13, 2023. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
  16. ^ "'Artivist' Nikkolas Smith Combines Art And Activism Into A Singular Superpower". NPR.org. Archived from the original on November 23, 2021. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
  17. ^ "stolen". Adrian Brandon. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  18. ^ a b Bayoc, Cbabi (2020). "RIP Son". American Ethnologist. 47 (2): 174–175. doi:10.1111/amet.12897. ISSN 1548-1425. S2CID 242991120.
  19. ^ Liam Reilly (October 3, 2021). "Bronze bust of George Floyd defaced at New York City's Union Square". CNN. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  20. ^ WABC (June 17, 2021). "George Floyd statue unveiled outside City Hall in Newark". ABC7 New York. Archived from the original on June 17, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  21. ^ Kreutz, Liz (December 29, 2020). "Vandalized Breonna Taylor sculpture in downtown Oakland has been stolen, artist says". ABC7 San Francisco. Archived from the original on January 1, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  22. ^ Cascone, Sarah (October 1, 2021). "An Artist's Busts of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and John Lewis Go Up in New York's Union Square—See Images Here". Artnet News. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  23. ^ Bland, Archie (July 15, 2020). "Edward Colston statue replaced by sculpture of Black Lives Matter protester Jen Reid". The Guardian. Archived from the original on December 31, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  24. ^ "Jen Reid: Bristol Black Lives Matter statue removed". BBC News. July 16, 2020. Archived from the original on July 16, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  25. ^ Dunlea, Reed (June 23, 2020). "Black Lives Matter Co-Founder on Building a Movement Through Art". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 24, 2022. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  26. ^ @NatGeoUK (August 1, 2020). "The history of the raised fist, a global symbol of fighting oppression". National Geographic. Archived from the original on December 6, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  27. ^ "The meaning and history of the Black Power fist used by Black Lives Matter". inews.co.uk. June 19, 2020. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  28. ^ Horowitz, Juliana Menasce. "Support for Black Lives Matter declined after George Floyd protests, but has remained unchanged since". Pew Research Center. Archived from the original on September 27, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  29. ^ "A man threw paint on a sculpture of George Floyd. It's the second time the statue has been vandalized". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  30. ^ "George Floyd mural in Rochester gets vandalized". KIMT News. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  31. ^ "George Floyd mural in Minneapolis defaced with black paint". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  32. ^ Ortiz, Erik. "A Breonna Taylor sculpture was vandalized. Its artist says it's an "act of racist aggression."". NBC News. Archived from the original on December 23, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  33. ^ Treisman, Rachel (October 28, 2021). "An actor has been charged with vandalizing a New York City statue of George Floyd". NPR. Archived from the original on November 25, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  34. ^ Freytas-Tamura, Kimiko de (October 29, 2021). "A School Mural Was Supposed to Celebrate Black Lives. Instead, It Was Destroyed". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on August 29, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  35. ^ Yancey-Bragg, N'dea. "A massive Black Lives Matter mural has been dedicated to George Floyd in front of his high school". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on December 3, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  36. ^ Hemmerich, Sj S. (September 3, 2021). "Art as Activism and Allyship: Black Lives Matter Student Murals". Art Education. 74 (5): 25–31. doi:10.1080/00043125.2021.1928469. ISSN 0004-3125. S2CID 236938673. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  37. ^ Payne, Ed (July 16, 2015). "Michael Brown art exhibit is 'disturbing, disgusting,' father says". CNN. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  38. ^ Parikh, Shanti; Kwon, Jong Bum (May 2020). "Introduction: Still here in the afterlives". American Ethnologist. 47 (2): 110–120. doi:10.1111/amet.12884. ISSN 0094-0496. S2CID 240619620.
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