The most powerful exhibit this year during our visit at Mass MoCA was the work of artist Vincent Valdez. The exhibit takes up more than three galleries. Vincent Valdez bears witness to the world around him, chronicling America at the margins. Just a Dream… is the artist’s first major museum survey including work from over twenty years across all media. The exhibition addresses American politics today, including topics such as boxing, lynchings of Mexican Americans, border walls, politics, greed, the Ku Klux Klan, and the failings and triumphs of society. There is something about his portraits, that hold me in their grip when I look at them. I will show you some tomorrow. This particular painting of a group of KKK members is an enormous canvas, maybe 25 feet wide and powerful because of the subject matter. And it seems even more powerful because it is entirely a black & white image.. Please click on this because it is an extra large image.
4 comments:
The photo is griping. The black and white of the portrait definitely add to the chill of the photo. It elicits painful emotion, both sad and angry, for brown and black skinned people who have suffered and continue to suffer from the hate of racists by losing their rights and sometimes their lives. I looked up and read about his exhibition and I appreciate Valdez drawing attention to American history, past and present. Sounds like a fascinating exhibition. Trace
Well said Tracy🏌️♀️
Yes, well said indeed, Tracy. So glad you looked up the description of the exhibition. There was so much written about what this artist has done and I never have enough space to write it all down on the blog.
I had a difficult time looking at this photo because of the history of the organization and how they terrorized and murdered black people and more. Vincent Valdez is certainly a brave artist exhibiting his photos. Betsey
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