‘To The Polls’ Mural Exhibition was created in partnership with Mural Arts Philadelphia and Streets Dept. 10 participating artist have been asked to create an 8×8-foot temporary mural that rallies the Philadelphia community around civic participation through the act of voting. The exhibition will be on view from September 26th, 2018 through October 3rd, 2018, with viewing hours and on-site voter registration from 12-5pm (with the exception of September 29th). Two public events will activate the exhibition space:
‘To The Polls’ Exhibition Opening:
September 26th, 2018 from 5-8pm
448 North 10th Street in Spring Arts
Exhibition Artist Panel:
October 1st, 2018 from 5-8pm
448 North 10th Street in Spring Arts
The cost is FREE and open to the public.
Photo credit: Conrad Benner from Streets Dept
To The Polls was an exhibition that utilized artistry to encourage civic engagement. As one of the participating artists, my mission was to influence people to get out and vote and to speak to the experience of those that have been marginalized, oppressed, discriminated against and excluded. My frontier for tackling American democracy started with a painting titled ‘The County Election’ by George Caleb Bingham, 1811-1879 which is apart of a series that depicts crowds of all white men from various class systems gathered to hear political speeches, politicians personally appealing for votes, and the public announcement of election results. I wanted to explore representation and amend what can be viewed as important and coded in the original composition by replacing many of the figures from Bingham’s painting with subjects that can testify to the status of black people and black women throughout American history. We live in a society that is still recovering from the institutional racism that the legacy of slavery put into place. According to Pew Research, the black voter turnout rate declined for the first time in 20 years in a presidential election, falling to 59.6% in 2016. Registering to vote, going to the polls to vote, and pushing images forward that can educate and that reinforces the reality that we could be more involved in civic matters could be antidotes to our current conditions and feeling of discouragement. We are the key components to overcoming exclusion and advancing the progress of people that are striving for excellence.
Moving from the left to the right, my proposed rendering looks at reference figures from the following artworks: ‘Grand Marshal’ by Eddie Shrieffer, ‘Yellow Ladies’ by Tom Feelings, ‘Funeral Procession’ by Ellis Wilson, ‘Cora’s’ by Henry Taylor, ‘Boy With Raised Arm’ by Sidney Goodman, ‘Blues For Smoke’ by Barkley L. Hendricks, ‘Aunt Jemima’ from the pancake box, ‘Try On Dreams Until I Find The One That Fits Me. They All Fit Me’ by Amy Sherald, ‘The Problem We All Live With’ (Ruby Bridges) by Norman Rockwell, ‘Come With Me, Now I Need You’ by Mickalene Thomas, ‘Three Queens’ by Tim Okamura, ‘Sidewalk Scene with Graduate’ by Ernie Barnes, ‘The Hawk, Blah, Blah, Blah’ by Barkley L. Hendricks, ‘Slaves Picking Cotton on a Plantation’ by William Ludlow Sheppard, ‘October’s Gone…Goodnight’ by Barkley L. Hendricks, ‘Barack Obama Presidential Portrait’ by Kehinde Wiley, ‘The First Vote (Freedmen)’ by A. R. Waud, ‘Setting the Game Rules’ by Ernie Barnes, ‘Scout (Boy)’ by Kerry James Marshall, ‘Icon for Fifi’ by Barkley L. Hendricks, ‘The Trial of the Amistad Captives’ by Hale Woodruff, ‘Major Martin Robison Delany’ by unknown artist, ‘Ronald Reed Murder Trial’ (Courtroom Sketch) by Cedric Hohnstadt, ‘Banner For Willy J.’ by Charles White, ‘School of Beauty, School of Culture’ by Kerry James Marshall, ‘The Thankful Poor’ by Henry Ossawa Tanner, ‘Woman in Striped Dress’ by Joseph Delaney, ‘Smoking My Pipe’ by Samuel Joseph Brown, ‘Chet and Hector’ by Sterling Brown and the background is a mural on businesses along Germantown Avenue in Philadelphia by Haas & Hahn.
Limited edition prints may still be available of my drawing as well as the full color digital mockup on the shop page of my website:
I’m a native of West Philadelphia whose ancestral roots in the city go back three generations. I hold a BA in Studio Art from Kutztown University and work across an array of media, including computer graphics, mural arts and drawing. I have exhibited at the African American Museum and has work in the permanent collection of the Pennsylvania Convention Center. In 2018 I was awarded Rad Girl Artist of the Year. My civil involvement includes serving in the Walnut Hill Community Association in my neighborhood and I have worked the polls for a number of years: 46th Ward, 22nd Division.
