A New American Negro (2018)

Private Art Showing—St. Cloud, MN 8-12-2018

The term “new Negro” has been used since the early 1900’s to denote a shift in the attitudes of Black men and women into an organized, vocal group that would challenge Jim Crow, Segregation, and other forms of disenfranchisement.

For all the victories and progress made within the last 100 years, today the Negro finds himself as untrusted, poorly educated, and over-represented in the U.S. Prison system.

Each image, titled a “track” is an abrasive and unflinching commentary on today’s Black youth. Predominately black-and-white by choice, the lack of color forces the viewer to confront the violent imagery daring to leap off the paper. Tight, controlled linework draws the eye inward, leading the eye deeper into the work, subtlety be damned.

Track I (intro). The Atomic Negro

Track II. The Misguided Negro

Track III. The Disillusioned Negro

Track IV. The Self-Destructive Negro

Track V. The End of the Negro? (2021 Remix)

Having graduated a few months prior to this showing, A New American Negro was a collection of (at the time) my most socially-conscious artwork. From a technical standpoint, at the time it was my most sophisticated work. The message was too blunt, however. With little room for interpretation, the art speaks at rather than with you.