Black History Month: Bisa Butler
For Black History Month, I thought I'd share some of the visual and literary artists who inspire me. Let’s talk about:
Bisa Butler and her work. Photo credit: BisaButler.com
Butler is a New Jersey-based textile artist. She’s known for her stunning quilted portraits of Black people, which look like collages pieced together with West African fabrics. Even if you don't know her by name, you've probably seen her work by now: her portrait of "Black Panther" actor Chadwick Boseman is full of color, joy, and sorrow. I love her work for so many reasons, including:
her incredible skill at creating shading and depth
her frequent use of vintage photos as reference material, many of which I recognize.
The next time you see her name and work, look closely at the eyes of the portrait subject. They're unbelievably expressive, even though they're literally just bits of cloth.
Now that I’ve introduced you to a couple of outstanding visual artists, let’s take a look at a writer I love. Stay tuned for the next blog post…
On my Christmas wish list
You don’t have to give me every artwork in this video for Christmas. I’m not greedy.
Whichever one you choose from my wish list, it’ll be the star of this wall. It’s 11.09 feet (3.38 meters high) by 9.12 feet (2.78 meters wide). So easy to fill!
Lemme help you out with a few more suggested presents:
Bisa Butler discusses “Three Kings” at Pulse Miami, 2018
“Three Kings” is only one of many breath-taking art quilts created by Bisa Butler. If her gallery’s already sold this piece, I would also accept “Zouave.” (Both are probably spoken for, but it never hurts to ask.)
“Saint Woman” (detail) by Amy Sherald, from “In This Imperfect Present Moment” at Seattle Art Museum
“Saint Woman” by Amy Sherald belongs to the Seattle Art Museum, but maybe you could acquire another portrait. “Freeing Herself Was One Thing, Taking Ownership of that Freed Self Was Another” might be available. If we position it properly, I’m sure we could fit two more pieces next to this one.
Textile work by Basil Kincaid at Design Miami, 2019 (from Mindy Solomon Gallery website)
Either one of these Basil Kincaid quilts would be amazing: “Celeste” on the left, or “Take Me Home” on the right. Again, I probably have room for both. Surprise me.
Liz Tran, “Ornament 14” at Morton Fine Art
But you know what would really wake up that wall space? A salon-style wall of paintings by Liz Tran. The biggest one available at Morton Fine Art is only four by four feet — plenty of room for six more circular paintings. Done! I’ll take a break from blogging to hang them up properly, and then I’ll be back January 8th. Happy holidays!