To Trap a Trickster (in progress); 2017.
Snip/Hive; 2017; (in progress)
Snip/Hive; 2017.
Snip/Hive (detail); 2017.
Snip/Hive (detail); 2017
Poetics of the Disembodied installation view; 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: Installation view; 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: MOCA GA 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: installation view MOCA GA 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: MOCA GA 2016
Constellation Reconstituted 2016
Constellation (detail)
Constellation (detail)
A Snare for Ezekiel Charles; 2016
A Snare for Ezekiel Charles (detail); 2016. charcoal on wood.
A Snare for Ezekial Charles (detail); 2016.
Grounded; 2016.
Blocked at Five Points; 2016.
Shala Whitehead in Blocked at Five Points; 2016.
Listeners Witnesses of the Trade; 2016
Listeners/ Witnesses of the Trade; 2016
Freedom's Price; 2016.
Freedom's Price; 2016
Freedoms Price: Poetics of the Disembodied 2016
Freedom's Price (detail); 2016
Freedom's Price (detail); 2016.
Freedom's Price ( performance still); 2016.
Freedom's Price (performance still); 2016.
Freedom's Price (performance still); 2016.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.
Writer's Block; 2016
Writers Block (detail); 2016
The Ballad of Raymond Sanders; 2015
The Ballad of Raymond Sanders (detail); 2015. Pen and ink on paper
Writers Block: A Letter for Milton; 2016.
A Letter for Milton (detail); 2016. Pen and ink on paper
Writers Block: A Letter for Ashley; 2016.
A Letter for Ashley (detail); 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Writers Block: A Letter for Vivian; 2016.
A Letter for Vivian (detail); 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Tight Packers: A Depleted Harvest; 2016. Graphite on wood panel and tin; sardine cans; photo transfer and paint.
Tight Packers; 2016
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest (detail); 2015-16'. Graphite on wood panel and tin; photo transfer and paint.
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest (detail); 2016.
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest (excerpt detail); 2016.
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest; 2016. Graphite on wood panel and sardine can.
Root/Anchor After Gober; 2016
Sentiment; 2015. Forged steel; cast resin hands; rope, and pillow.
A Sentiment (detail); 2016.
Visionaries_Masud Olufani Performance featuring Shala Whitehead_480p
Poetics of the Disembodied Promo Still; 2016. Shot on location at Ossabaw Island, GA.
Poetics of the Disembodied Photo still; 2016. Shot on location on Ossabaw Island, GA.
To Gut; 2013.
Imprint: Past as Prologue installation view; 2016. Courtesy of the SCAD Museum of Art
Yankee; 2016. Pen and ink on paper
Street People; 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Man who Chills; 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Man Who Offers Peace; 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Days of Future Past; 2015
He Opens; 2015.
Note to Self; 2015.
Note to Self (detail); 2015.
To Cut; 2012. Carved basswood; woven dreadlocks; paint, and shears.
To Cut (detail)
The Weight of Memory: Object for Anastacia Escrava; 2012
The Weight of Memory: Object for Anstacia Escrava (detail); 2012.
Requiem for One of Many; 2010.
MFA thesis exhibition: Mason Murer Fine Art, 2012.
Root Memory; 2012
To Bear Witness; 2011.
To Bear Witness (detail); 2011.
Baggage; 2010
For Elias & Sarah, 2010.
Processional; 2012.
To Trap a Trickster (in progress); 2017.Wood; paper mache'; copper leaf; resin; branch
Snip/Hive; 2017; (in progress)graphite on paper mache'; 310 cast resin bees; wax; audio recording; steel chain, and tree branch
Snip/Hive; 2017.
Snip/Hive (detail); 2017.
Snip/Hive (detail); 2017
Poetics of the Disembodied installation view; 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: Installation view; 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: MOCA GA 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: installation view MOCA GA 2016
Poetics of the Disembodied: MOCA GA 2016
Constellation Reconstituted 2016carved bass wood; resin; copper; cotton; red clay; hair; clothe; paint; stain; wax
Constellation (detail)
Constellation (detail)
A Snare for Ezekiel Charles; 2016
A Snare for Ezekiel Charles (detail); 2016. charcoal on wood.
A Snare for Ezekial Charles (detail); 2016.
Grounded; 2016.carved bass wood; tar; salvaged wood flooring; paint; cotton sacks; raw cottonDimensions are variable.Inspired by a passage from Isabel Wilkerson's extraordinary book The Warmth of Other Suns, this mixed media work speaks to the legacy of economic disenfranchisement inherited by the descendants of enslaved African Americans. The plane personifies an aspirational impulse for transcendence, but in the context of this work it is weighed down by a burden that impedes its ascension. The oversized cotton sack is tethered to the tail section rendering the vehicle inert. The sculpture subverts the inference that the disproportionate representation of African Americans among the poor represents a predisposition towards poverty. The reality is quite different. In a moving section of the book Wilkerson writes: "Multiplied over generations, it (slavery and Jim Crow) would mean a wealth deficit between the races that would require a miracle windfall or a near asceticism on the part of colored families if they were to have any chance of catching up or amassing anything of value."
Blocked at Five Points; 2016.Inspired by the Crawford Frazier Slave Auction House that once stood at the Five Points MARTA Station in downtown Atlanta, this mixed media work features a time lapse video of pedestrians moving through the present day depot while a ghostly image of the auction house--sourced from the Atlanta History Center archives--drifts in out of the picture plain. In the foreground a single wooden block mimics the auction site while vocalist Shala Whitehead performs an a cappella rendition of the Negro spiritual Oh Freedom.
Shala Whitehead in Blocked at Five Points; 2016.This multi media performance was created to memorialize the slave market which once stood on the grounds of Five Points MARTA station in downtown Atlanta. The time lapse video of the station as it exists today is haunted by the ghostly registry of a photograph of the slave market which once occupied the space.
Listeners Witnesses of the Trade; 2016sand; cast resin ears; clam shells; video; audio recording.Dimensions are variable. Inspired by the Gullah Geechie communities of the Georgia sea islands, this mixed media installation is meant to honor the spirits of the millions of Africans who died in transport to the 'new world.' The clam shells are fitted with cast resin ears which are placed on a bed of sand sourced from Sapelo island, home to an enduring Gullah community that maintains a culture closely linked to West Africa. The time lapse video of the encroaching sea suggests the watery grave of the dead. The audio recording of the seashore sets a rhythmic meter as the voice of a young girl chanting an Islamic prayer can be heard over it. The work affirms the history of Islam in America as nearly one third of Africans forced into slavery were Muslims. The first slave bought to Sapelo was a man named Bilal which literally translates to 'the first to believe in the Prophet.'
Listeners/ Witnesses of the Trade; 2016cast resin; clam shells; sand; video, and audio file. This multi media work was created in response to a trip to Sapelo and Ossabaw islands. The disembodied ears embedded within the clam shells references those lost to the sea during the Middle Passage; they are witnesses--spiritual repositories of meaning and memory. The Islamic chant heard over the sound of the encroaching seashore references the thousands of Muslim slaves--roughly 1/3 of all slaves taken--who were forcibly removed from the African continent.
Freedom's Price; 2016.Silkscreen on wood panel; water fountain; spigot; segregation sign; forged steel; resin; stones; wood flooringDimensions are variable. Conceived to honor the freedom riders whose non-violent protest was waged to integrate interstate busing, this sprawling installation is composed of a series of ten silk screened mugshot images of protesters arranged sequentially--each with a loaded slingshot facing them. Atthe heart of the installation a dividing wall separates a porcelain drinking fountain from a spigot. Above, a vintage segregation sign designates white and colored only. Clusters of stones rest on the floor beneath the photographs suggesting the blows endured to actualize a higher ideal. The work is augmentedby a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King; "unearned suffering is redemptive."
Freedom's Price; 2016silkscreen on wood panel; resin; steel; stones; drinking fountain; spigot; segregation signDimensions are variableConceived to honor the freedom riders whose non-violent protest was waged to integrate interstate busing, this sprawling installation is composed of a series of ten silk screened mugshot images of protesters arranged sequentially--each with a loaded slingshot facing them. Atthe heart of the installation a dividing wall separates a porcelain drinking fountain from a spigot. Above, a vintage segregation sign designates white and colored only. Clusters of stones rest on the floor beneath the photographs suggesting the blows endured to actualize a higher ideal. The work is augmentedby a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King; "unearned suffering is redemptive."
Freedoms Price: Poetics of the Disembodied 2016steel; resin; wood; stones; sling shots; silkscreen on wood panel; drinking fountain; spigot; segregation signDimensions are variable.Conceived to honor the freedom riders whose non-violent protest was waged to integrate interstate busing, this sprawling installation is composed of a series of ten silk screened mugshot images of protesters arranged sequentially--each with a loaded slingshot facing them. Atthe heart of the installation a dividing wall separates a porcelain drinking fountain from a spigot. Above, a vintage segregation sign designates white and colored only. Clusters of stones rest on the floor beneath the photographs suggesting the blows endured to actualize a higher ideal. The work is augmentedby a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King; "unearned suffering is redemptive."
Freedom's Price (detail); 2016Conceived to honor the freedom riders whose non-violent protest was waged to integrate interstate busing, this sprawling installation is composed of a series of ten silk screened mugshot images of protesters arranged sequentially--each with a loaded slingshot facing them. Atthe heart of the installation a dividing wall separates a porcelain drinking fountain from a spigot. Above, a vintage segregation sign designates white and colored only. Clusters of stones rest on the floor beneath the photographs suggesting the blows endured to actualize a higher ideal. The work is augmentedby a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King; "unearned suffering is redemptive."
Freedom's Price (detail); 2016.Conceived to honor the freedom riders whose non-violent protest was waged to integrate interstate busing, this sprawling installation is composed of a series of ten silk screened mugshot images of protesters arranged sequentially--each with a loaded slingshot facing them. Atthe heart of the installation a dividing wall separates a porcelain drinking fountain from a spigot. Above, a vintage segregation sign designates white and colored only. Clusters of stones rest on the floor beneath the photographs suggesting the blows endured to actualize a higher ideal. The work is augmentedby a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King; "unearned suffering is redemptive."
Freedom's Price ( performance still); 2016.
Freedom's Price (performance still); 2016.
Freedom's Price (performance still); 2016.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.Mugshot image of a Mississippi freedom rider.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.Mugshot image of Mississippi freedom rider.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.Mugshot image of Mississippi freedom rider.
Freedom's Price (excerpt); 2016. Silkscreen and resin on wood panel.Mugshot image of Mississippi freedom rider.
Writer's Block; 2016pen and ink on paper; vintage typewriters; and wooden shelves.Dimensions are variable.
Writers Block (detail); 2016
The Ballad of Raymond Sanders; 2015Ink on paper, typew
The Ballad of Raymond Sanders (detail); 2015. Pen and ink on paper
Writers Block: A Letter for Milton; 2016.
A Letter for Milton (detail); 2016. Pen and ink on paper
Writers Block: A Letter for Ashley; 2016.pen and ink on paper; vintage typewriter
A Letter for Ashley (detail); 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Writers Block: A Letter for Vivian; 2016.
A Letter for Vivian (detail); 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Tight Packers: A Depleted Harvest; 2016. Graphite on wood panel and tin; sardine cans; photo transfer and paint.
Tight Packers; 2016graphite on wood panel; sardine cans; photo transfer; paint
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest (detail); 2015-16'. Graphite on wood panel and tin; photo transfer and paint.
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest (detail); 2016.
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest (excerpt detail); 2016.Graphite on wood panel and tin
Tight Packers A Depleted Harvest; 2016. Graphite on wood panel and sardine can.
Root/Anchor After Gober; 2016resin; hair, and steel anchorRoot/Anchor makes allusions to the enduring strength of lineage and ancestral connections. The anchor is a stabilizing force while the nautical rope--made of dread locks--symbolically links one generation to the next. The child's foot is bound to that connection indicating the cohesive bonds to family and community.
Sentiment; 2015. Forged steel; cast resin hands; rope, and pillow.forged steel; resin; pillow; rope; paint, and wax
A Sentiment (detail); 2016.cast resin; charred rope; pillow; pigment
Visionaries_Masud Olufani Performance featuring Shala Whitehead_480pThis performance was produced for the Savannah College of Art and Design to celebrate the city of Savannah's historic sit-in movement. Art direction and installation produced by Masud Olufani in conjunction with SCAD. The portrait images are of Ernest Robinson; Carolyn Quillion, and Joan Tyson--the first students to be jailed at the protest at Levy's Department store in 1960.
Poetics of the Disembodied Promo Still; 2016. Shot on location at Ossabaw Island, GA.Collaboration with Davion Alston
Poetics of the Disembodied Photo still; 2016. Shot on location on Ossabaw Island, GA. Collaboration with Davion Alston
To Gut; 2013.wood; tin; silkscreen on wood; saw; sawdust;.Dimensions are variable.The work references the dissolution of the family unit. The tree saw requires two people to operate it indicating the participatory involvement of both parties in the breakdown of family stability. The ghostly registry of the child's eyes bears witness to the destructive forces he/she cannot stave off. The child is the helpless observer; the passive spectator; a casualty of events and circumstances beyond his control.
Imprint: Past as Prologue installation view; 2016. Courtesy of the SCAD Museum of Art
Yankee; 2016. Pen and ink on paper
Street People; 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Man who Chills; 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Man Who Offers Peace; 2016. Pen and ink on paper.
Days of Future Past; 2015graphite and photo transfer on wood panel, steel chain; 16"x17"x5"The past confronts the future in this small mixed media work. The slave meets his future self--the image bisected by a space ship with a schematic rendering of the Brookes slave ship at its core.
He Opens; 2015.graphite on wood panel, fabric, skeleton key, hinge, paint; 9"x15"x5"
Note to Self; 2015.tree branch, carved bass wood, screw, graphite on dyed paper, graphite on wood panel; 11"x21"6"
Note to Self (detail); 2015.
To Cut; 2012. Carved basswood; woven dreadlocks; paint, and shears.woven dread locks, carved bass wood, wax, stain, paint, shears; dimensions are variable
To Cut (detail)woven dreadlocks, shears
The Weight of Memory: Object for Anastacia Escrava; 2012carved bass wood, forged steel, radio flyer, pillow, cotton, rust, stain, wax; 12"x40"x14"
The Weight of Memory: Object for Anstacia Escrava (detail); 2012.
Requiem for One of Many; 2010.wood, steel, red clay, hair, cloth, cotton, rope, paint, tobacco, silk screen on wood panel, ladder; 48"x94"x6"
MFA thesis exhibition: Mason Murer Fine Art, 2012.
Root Memory; 2012cast bronze and hair.
To Bear Witness; 2011. wood, forged steel, resin, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar, bible, stain, paint; dimensions are variable.This work was created with the idea of crafting an amplifying device for a small child. The witness stand is scaled to the average height of a seven year old child. The choice to paint the megaphone red was in response to common color schemes of children's toys. The feet are cast in resin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar--as the nursery rhyme indicates that children are made of "sugar and spice and everything nice."
To Bear Witness (detail); 2011.
Baggage; 2010horn, suitcase, silk screen on fabric; 26"x48"5"
For Elias & Sarah, 2010.Forged steel; wood; cloth; rust; silkscreen on fabric; dye; cotton; tobacco; coffee grounds; each figure is approximately 72" tall.
Processional; 2012.wood; silk screen on fabric; red clay; coffee grounds; sugar; cotton; coal; sea salt; nails; rope; paint, and resin
info
/
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
