https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj The "Black Lives Movement" began on July 13, 2014 after the killing of an unarmed black male named Trayvon Martin by a white male, George Zimmerman, in Florida. The campaign grew larger after 2 other unarmed black males named Michael Brown and Eric Garner were murdered by white police officers in Ferguson, Missouri and New York City. All the artists in this collection were inspired by the mentioned events and created their own interpretations of their beliefs on the "Black Lives Matter" campaign. Dareece Walker created a self portrait of himself against a wall with his hands against a wall in an arrest pose. He has a tattoo on his back that shows an american flag with the words "Made In Usa". The artwork is created on cardboard with charcoal. The portrait shows that Walker is not treated like a full american. He is treated like a black american and like the cardboard material it is created on, he is disposable and easily replaced in society. I chose Walker's art because it reminds me of the articles I have been seeing about unarmed black males being arrested for racial profiling. The arrest pose he is in stands, out in my mind what young black males are enduring in our society everyday. "Hands Up Don't Shoot" was created by Dolly Li, an asian who works for Al Jazeera News Service. The piece is made with watercolor paint on watercolor paper. Her art shows African Americans with their hands up in the air in front of a line of police cars with red circles around the car's headlights. I chose her piece because it shows the injustice black americans face when demonstrating in front of the police. Li's art was chosen because it is a similar message as Walker's "Made in Usa". It shows the problem black people have when demonstrating for "Black Lives Matter" causes. "Speak Up" was created by college student, Chris Kindred, and is made with watercolor paint on illustration paper. The piece is a white silhouette speaking into a black hand. The message is to uplift and empower black people to speak out against the ongoing racism problem in America. I chose this artwork because it displays the message that black people must speak out about racism and the problems they are facing in America. If black people don't speak out and gain support, the issue will never be taken seriously in America. "Protect and Serve" was a photograph created by Ti-Rock Moore using rope and neon lights. The piece shows a neon light sign that says "Choke Hold" with a rope noose for the letter O's in choke and hold. The piece was inspired after Eric Garner was choked and killed by a NYC police officer. I chose this because it speaks out about the injustice of black americans being killed by police officers around the US. Moore's photograph stands out in my mind because of it's powerful imagery. The word "Choke Hold" sends a message that black lives matter and innocent people shouldn't be subject to police brutality. "Stand Our Ground" was created by Tes-One using a 3 silk screen printing technique. The piece is a silhouette of a black person with a clenched black power fist as the head. This piece says that black people need to stand up for their rights and stand behind each other as a race. It is a similar message to Kindred's "Speak Up". I chose this piece because the black power fist shows me that black people are aware of their racial problems and will keep fighting until there is justice for their people. The black panther fist signifies that black people must unite and be strong as a race. "In Memoriam" was created by Carson Ellis using mechanical pencils and gouache on watercolor paper. The piece shows the words "Killed By Police" and a 20 black people who were unarmed and killed by police officers around the country. I chose this piece because it shows so many black people who were killed by police officers and the sad part is there should be way more faces added to this illustration. It shows black people's lives do not matter because they are getting killed and the numbers are growing each day. All the art in this collection has to do with the "Black Lives Matter" campaign. I chose these images because they all have powerful messages and were inspired by the murders of so-called innocent black people who were killed due to racism and social profiling. The last addition to the exhibit is a recent video of police officers racially profiling 5 unarmed teenagers in Grand Rapids, Michigan. This video shows how the police are still singling out young black males who are caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. There is no reason why 5 young black boys should be forced to the ground at gunpoint without any explanation in front of some of their parents. I chose this video because it ties in with all the artwork in this exhibit. It solidifies The "Black Lives Matter" campaign still needs a lot of support to make a change in society. It is still an ongoing problem and shows up in the news daily. en-us 2017-04-24 22:07:28 UTC 2024-05-06 09:11:54 UTC hello@padlet.com darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167979255 Chris Kindred, 2015
paint on illustrator paper
Appeared in his college newspaper at Virginia Commonwealth University and in The Washington Post article on July 13, 2016, "The most powerful art from the #Black Lives movement, three years in"

This is Kindred's way of uplifting and empowering black people to fight racism in America by speaking up and being heard (Fogg). His inspiration for this piece was after seeing all the injustices in the cases of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Eric Garner.]]> 2017-04-24 22:14:17 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167979255 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980053 Carson Ellis, 2014
mechanical pencils, gouache on watercolor paper
Appeared in The Washington Post article on July 13, 2016, "The most powerful art from the #Black Lives Matter movement, three years in".

 Ellis is a famous children's book illustrator who was inspired to create this piece after the policeman who killed Eric Garner was not indicted by a grand jury. She did research and picked out 20 African Americans who were unarmed and murdered by police throughout The US. Ellis never doubted the existence of racism, but after her research couldn't believe the magnitude of it (Work) ]]> 2017-04-24 22:16:42 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980053 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980500 Tes-One, 2012
3 color silk screen print on 140 pound French Archival Paper "18 x 24"

Appeared in The Washington Post article on July 13, 2016, "The most powerful art from the #Black Lives Movement, three years in" and 1XRun.com print gallery. The piece is inspired by the killing of Trayvon Martin and the justice system not filing charges against his murderer. The black fist symbol is a reminder for black people to stand up for their rights and stand behind each other as a race.

]]> 2017-04-24 22:21:15 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980500 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980586 Ti-Rock Moore, 2015
neon lights and rope on plaster wall-photograph
Appeared in her personal art gallery and at The Gallery Guichard in Chicago, Illinois. "Confronting Truths:Wake Up!" collection and The Washington Post article on July 13, 2016, "The most powerful art from the #Black Lives movement, three years in".

Moore has been a race activist for years, but feels her art speaks much more loudly than she ever could in person (About). She was inspired to create this piece after the murder of Eric Garner in New York City by a white police officer. Garner was choked to death and the noose and bright neon lights gives meaning for America to wake up and stop the persecution of Black Americans.]]> 2017-04-24 22:22:34 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980586 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980772 Dolly Li, 2014
watercolor paint on watercolor paper
Appeared in the Al Jazeera IOS App and in The Washington Post article on July 13, 2016, "The most powerful art from the #Black Lives Matter movement, three years in"

Li found herself in the middle of a Black Lives Matter demonstration and was face to face with police officers in riot gear. As an Asian woman she felt fear, but wondered what fear would be like if she was a young black male (Fogg). Her inspiration for this piece was after the murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri

]]> 2017-04-24 22:25:01 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167980772 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167981175 Darence Walker, 2016
charcoal on cardboard "36 x 84"
Appeared in Washington Post article on July 13, 2016, "The most powerful art from the #Black Lives Matter movement, three years in" and The Long Gallery in Harlem, New York. "Black is the Giant" collection.

Walker uses cardboard as a medium to interpret that it is disposable and easily discarded like black lives in America (Dareece). His self image in an arrest pose with a US Flag on his back describes that he feels american, but treated like a Black American. His inspiration for this piece was after the Trayvon Martin murder in Florida by a white person. ]]> 2017-04-24 22:29:20 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/167981175 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/168184566  The collection of artwork pertains to the topic "Black Lives Matter". This topic is on television news channels, social media and in printed newspapers everyday. Over the past several years, many African American people have been murdered unarmed or for uncalled reasons. Many of the victims were killed by police officers which some where brought to justice and others got off without charges. African American people, White people and people of other races and nationalities are crying out in protests and demonstrations and want to put an end to this racial violence. Artists of all colors have created art to depict the ongoing problem and some have received notable recognition. The artists in this presentation are urban street artists, college students, storybook illustrators, newspaper columnists and race activists. All the artwork speaks about the same topic of "Black Lives Matter" and suggests that the police need to do a better job in racially profiling African American people. People need to stand up and speak out to make sure everybody in this country is treated fairly and equally. All the artists in this presentation have a story to tell and a picture says a thousand words! All the artists were inspired to create their artwork after the murders of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Eric Garner. They all identified with the problem of racism in The US and interpreted their own feelings and expressions into what they created. Walker and Tes-One were inspired to create after Trayvon Martin was murdered. Li was inspired by the events in Ferguson after Michael Brown was killed. Ellis and Moore were inspired after Eric Garner was choked to death in NYC and Kindred was inspired by all 3 events. This exhibition demonstrates the need for America to wake up and stop racism and social profiling of young black americans. Too many black americans are being murdered who are mostly unarmed and picked on for their skin color and not for crimes committed. All the art in this exhibit stands up for the cause of "Black Lives Matter" and is a wake up call that something needs to be done and quickly. The best way to get this point across is by expressing one's self through art. Art is a visual, gets a message across and lasts forever. I believe the artists portrayed their feelings and emotions perfectly in their artwork and black lives do matter. Recently, a video surfaced in the news of 5 unarmed black males being subjected to racial profiling by Grand Rapids, Michigan police officers. The kids aged 12-14 had guns pointed at them and made to lie on the ground for no apparent reason. The police were looking for a bunch of black males involved in a street fight and harassed the wrong kids. We all need to wake up and put an end to social and racial injustice! ]]> 2017-04-25 17:38:41 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/168184566 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/168240471 Live Video Footage
April 24, 2017

5 Unexpected 12-14 year old unarmed black kids in Grand Rapids, Michigan were walking home from a basketball game when police show up and order the kids to the ground at gun point. In the video one of the kids tells the police officers he doesn't want to be killed. One of the mother's also says to the officers that they don't know how she feels about guns being pointed at her son. She also says she doesn't even care if they are guilty or not, this is no way to treat kids (MLive). This shows that racial profiling is still occurring today and the "Black Lives Matter" campaign still needs awareness to stop this from occurring.]]> 2017-04-25 21:24:58 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/168240471 darian_stuarts https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/168733976 "About." Ti-Rock Moore. N.p., Web. 25 Apr. 2017.

"Dareece Jordan Walker." _Dareece Walker _. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2017.

Fogg, Victoria A. "The Most Powerful Art from the #BlackLivesMatter Movement, Three Years in." The Washington Post. WP Company, 13 July 2016.

Mlivevideo. "Grand Rapids Police Stop 5 Unarmed Black Youths at Gunpoint." YouTube. YouTube, 20 Apr. 2017.

"The Art & Design of Leon Bedore." TES ONE\ILL  COMMUNICATION. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2017.

"WORK." Carson Ellis. N.p., n.d. Web 25 Apr. 2017.]]> 2017-04-27 18:55:39 UTC https://padlet.com/darian_stuarts/u1jdmenqauwj/wish/168733976