mod-america

[mod-america]

The Ben’s Chili Bowl Mural by Aniekan Udofia// SW, DC

The Ben’s Chili Bowl mural has been a popular D.C. attraction. On the mural is Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Prince, Harriet Tubman, Wale, Taraji P. Henson, Dick Gregory, Russ Parr, Roberta Flack, and a number of other prominent black figures. D.C. has been a major city within the U.S. that has been encouraging murals in order to prevent graffiti. As a result, U street is now the base for many popular D.C. murals. The city wanted to preserve creative expression, while keeping the walls clear of unwanted or unsolicited graffiti and tagging. Since its opening in 1958 by Ben Ali (an America-Trinidadian), Ben’s Chili Bowl has always been a major part of U street’s identity. Many African American figures have visited the restaurant to pay respect to its rich history. A writer for Atlas Obscura believes that the most notable part of Ben’s Chili Bowl’s history is the fact that during the 1968 Riots, Ben’s Chili Bowl stayed open past curfew in order to feed protesters and police (unlike many other businesses). To honor a noteworthy black owner of a restaurant in a city with rich black cultural history, D.C. decided to use the space along the side of Ben’s Chili Bowl to pay respect to black figures that have made headway or have achieved especially important feats within and outside the black community. The mural incorporates depictions of everyone from politicians to comedians, actors and abolitionists. Many credit the Ben’s Chili Bowl Murals with providing the necessary recognition of the influence of black culture in D.C. When I visited, I was especially wowed by the bright colors. The colors serve for a fervent feeling and call for the excitement and enjoyment that we should feel because of the success of all of those people on the mural. As an African-American girl, seeing a wall dedicated to people that look like me is especially important, as it is rare to see such celebration of black advancement. -M

[mod-america]

“Made in America” by Helder Batista// Artist’s Proof Gallery, Georgetown, DC

Batista’s piece is a ceramic, American flag wrapped gun. It is no secret that the United States is a lover of it’s Second Amendment. In the past two decades or so, in particular, the United States has put itself at the center of gun violence related controversy. The United States has had an unparalleled number of school shootings. From Columbine to Marjory Stoneman Douglas, school shootings have become a characteristic of our America. Lawmakers and advocates have been fighting over how to control this issue. Some believe that any sort of restriction of the Second Amendment is un-American and unconstitutional, while others believe that proper regulations and regular background checks are all that is needed to rectify or assuage this issue. Gun violence also has been associated with police brutality. Police brutality against African Americans and blacks in our country has skyrocketed. People blame the institutionalized discrimination and racism in our government. The black community has bonded together to make “Black Lives Matter,” in order to call attention to the elevated risk of black people going to jail or being pulled over, stopped, or questioned by police. Our country has always been “the land of the free, home of the brave,” and without guns or with the restriction of them, people fear we are taking away an intrinsic value of American culture. In this piece, Batista highlights how parts of the 1st Amendment and 2nd Amendment have conflicted with one another (freedom of speech, freedom to petition the government, and freedom of assembly vs. right to bear arms). People of all ages, Baby boomers, millennials, and Gen Z’ers, have taken to marching on Capitol Hill for their belief in gun reform. Last March, I had the opportunity to attend the March for Our Lives. Walking to Capitol Hill with a crowd of people your age, believing in what you believe is a surreal and indescribable experience. In our modern America, younger and younger generations have taken it upon themselves to advocate for their beliefs. Whatever the belief may be, I am so proud of the younger people in our America for speaking out and refusing to be ignored. -M

[mod-america]

Mickalene Thomas’ Portrait of Mnonjia depicts a fierce, confident woman. This piece

relates to goal #5, gender equality, and goal #10, reduced inequalities. This portrait is very unique in that it is accented with Swarovski crystals. Thomas is known for adding rhinestones, acrylic, and enamel to her works. Mickalene’s work is often influenced by the Harlem Renaissance as well as early and mid-twentieth century art movements such as Dada, Cubism, and Impressionism. Everything about this image focuses on confidence and power. From the woman’s positioning to the vivid colors to the white tiger beneath her feet; Mickalene Thomas constantly encourages the viewer to make a deeper connection with the painting and truly feel the same assurance as the subject. -K

[mod-america]

Jenny Holzer is an American artist who is best known for her work with art projects

revolving around text. Holzer uses words because she “wanted to offer content that people—not necessarily art people—could understand.” Holzer’s “For SAAM” is a very interactive piece that requires you to pay attention to the fast-moving words which slide down a 29-foot digital pillar. The comments that are displayed going down the pillar include “Abuse of power comes as no surprise” and “It’s nice when you like someone without declaring yourself.” The text displayed comes from several of the artist’s older projects called Truisms, Living, Survival, and Arno. Holzer uses this digital pole to tie in multiple SGD’s such as gender equality (goal #5), decent work and economic growth (goal #8), reduced inequalities (goal #10), and peace, justice and strong institutions (goal #16). -K

[mod-america]

electronic superhighway by nam june paik//smithsonian, dc #art #dc #tumblr

[mod-america]

“Black and White”//Collaboration between Byron Kim and Glenn Ligon, 1993, Smithsonian Art Museum “Black and White” emphasizes Reduced Inequalities (SDG #10) by creating a piece that is focused around skin color to show the lack of variety for black color palettes (4 x 8 grid of squares with various skin tones). The artist decided to create this piece because they were surprised by the flesh colored paint, which only consisted of pinks, peaches, and whites. “Black and White” spotlights the racial privilege that white people have in simple cases such as finding a paint pigment to match their skin tone. By simply showing the skin tones, Kim and Ligon call attention to the other sorts of privileges that white people have over colored populations. They use white skin tones and show the range of the shades, whereas they leave black skin tones just pure black, without much range. This reminds me of how in our society, we consider the color “nude” as a white person’s skin tone rather than including the multiple different “nudes” there actually are. I remember reading an article about an African-American man who had never come across a Band-Aid that matched his skin tone, until this year. “Black and White” prompts viewers to recognize that in our society, the default color is always “white,” in whatever it may be (whether we are looking for a “nude” heel, which always ends up being a peachy color, a band-aid to blend in with our skin, a makeup foundation shade), darker skin toned people have more difficulty in finding appropriately matched products. -M

[mod-america]

DTR Modern Gallery

[mod-america]

DTR Modern Gallery// R. T. Houben’s “George Washington” Houben was born in Bulgaria but grew up in America. In his art, he uses images from what he considers a defining part of a country’s power, their currency. In this particular piece, Houben used glaze, foil, acrylic, impasto, and water color to distort Washington and give him a more avant-garde look. Through currency, countries are able to assert their power and beliefs. Houben believes that the history and the present day are united through the currency. As the images on paper money and the general look of it were created decades or even centuries ago, Houben puts a modern and abstract twist on it in order to connect it more to the present and the current people. -M

[mod-america]

DTR Modern Gallery//Nelson De La Nuez’s “Material Girl” Nuez has been regarded as the “King of Pop Art.” Coming from Cuba at a young age, Nuez quickly developed a love for American culture, which he subsequently fused with his art. Through his pop art, Nuez challenges the “fine” art by incorporating mass culture and popular subjects of our modern day to create vibrant pieces for pure and utter enjoyment. Many of Nuez’s pieces include a “comic book” look which references back to the 50s, as you can tell by the characters’ looks and includes other traditional American objects like Tootsie Rolls, past magazine covers, and old advertisements, but places them into a modern day context. -M

[mod-america]

Hirshorn//Mark Bradford’s “Pickett’s Charge.” “Pickett’s Charge” is a 360 degree diorama. Bradford uses reproductions of pats of Paul Dominique Philippoteaux’s cyclorama. Bradford uses a number of different mediums and methods to create his piece: layered pieces of paper, different textures, ripping. In this piece, Bradford weaves the past with the present by showing depictions of the Civil War with images from today. The specific scene of the Civil War is from the Battle of Gettysburg, a battle that is often referred to as a pivotal point in not only the war, but American history (it was a crucial Union victory). The battle cost 51,118 lives but had it not turned out in favor of the Union, it is very likely the America we have today would be incredibly different. By creating a rough exterior on the diorama by tearing and cutting it, Bradford highlights the war’s complexities and challenges viewers to dig deeper into American narratives. In this particular political climate, Bradford’s piece pushes us to really wonder if things are as different now as they were then, as many actions and words we have viewed in America recently are reminiscent of this not so distant past. When discussing the Sustainable Development Goals, this piece most aligns with goal #10- reduced inequalities. Bradford exposes the inequalities, especially today, and push viewers to aim to reduce them or at least be cognizant of the many different inequalities in our world. He challenges us to recognize if our modern day situation is much different from the 1800s. Although slavery was abolished, are we all equal? When will we be equal… if ever? -M