Generations

Mixed media (acrylic, cotton swabs, sparkles) print. Paper: Cold press cotton ragweed textured fine art paper.

the story behind the art: I am the 7th generation removed from slavery. The 7th cotton swab represents me, and the previous ones are each generation before me. They say that "cotton is the fabric of our lives." This is literal for me and my family, who were brought to America to pick cotton, tobacco, and other products.

The gold sky represents the dreams and hopes of each generation of my family. It also represents the economic prosperity my family created for the U.S. The black soil is each generation's blood, sweat, and tears. It is the rich soil. And, it is the generational trauma. There are tiny sparkles in the soil that represent the resiliency of my people and our strength. They symbolize our unique stories and history that is largely lost the further you go back into family history. They're also the beauty of our culture and people in spite of our pain and circumstances.