Searching

These video portraits and accompanying audio are a contemporary study of the experience of black women as it relates to the ongoing devaluation of the black woman.

We live in times where there is easy access to some of the most inhumane murders, spread through footage captured on cell phones that connect billions of people to a very horrid yet intimate experience - the image of someone losing their life. People such as Trayvon Martin, who wore a hoodie the night of his murder - the same article of clothing that I wear daily on walks in my neighborhood; Or Tamir Rice - a boy who played with a toy gun when he was murdered - the same toy I enjoyed playing with as a child. Memories of these murders have sat with me and shaped my own personal identity and journey.

The artist found it important to document how these specific memories have affected women of color as this has resonated with her own personal identity. How do we care for black women during these times when they are specifically caring for everyone else in their community - their husbands, fathers, brothers and sons? When we stare at these women as they sit silently, are we re-discovering who they truly are or are we continuously disregarding their feelings in the midst of the racial tension currently happening in America? These visual portraits are important within the context of my work because they give the viewer an idea of the spectacle that black women become in the midst of these high profiled cases - silent bystanders searching for a way to voice their own concerns amongst the stigma created due to the effects of these memories.

The artist has chosen to evaluate this experience through the construct of a video loop where these women sit silent allowing themselves to be re-discovered through a more intimate gaze.

This forces the viewer to acknowledge the existence and often times vulnerability of these women giving these women the power to reclaim their own narrative and identity.