Summer 2019
Made Manifest
Brian Fraser for #mademanifest
On Black Art:
”Black art is reality, our reality. For me, there are things that people do from a technical perspective but there are also spirits and feelings and soul and things we feel in our every day lives That comes through these mediums. For me, black art means this is our reality, and this is our depiction of that reality in whatever form.”
On Creation:
“I create because I want to capture that reality. I want to capture my reality as it stands. I think its always been [about] sharing my vision, but I create because of the connection that I get when I am creating, with whatever those are. Whether its the people, whether its other things that beyond my control, there’s a deeper connection of what it means [to create]. What it means to create is something I have battled with with versus consumption. We consume all the time and for me that creation does make me feel like there is some kind of purpose out there. I create because of that feeling of being purposeful in life. Of giving back to all the things I am consuming. For me, creating those realities, creating those visions do make me feel whole. I feel like im giving something back. Something to whatever is going on here, creating makes me feel that. ”
Afropunk, 2019
Amalfi, 2019
She & Us
New beginnings mean the end of old things.
Dakar, 2017
Alex Covington
Of The Wing
Self In Workspace, 2019
Harlem, NY
Martha Tesema
Made Manifest
Martha Tesema
“Black art is the future. But also the past and the present.”
“I create because I want people to remember. I create, because I don’t know what else to do, that [creating] is how I move though this world and I think that is how I have always moved through this world. I do it because that is what has been passed down to me in my family. The tools to create have been passed down to me, and so I have taken those and run with them. In that sense, I have been able to look at the things the people in my family have created and hold on to those. So when I create, I try to do the same for whoever may come down the line in the future.”
Freddie L. Rankin
Made Manifest
Freddie L. Rankin
“Black art is the sustenance in which we thrive. Black art fuels America...shit. I stole that from Dunkin donuts.
Black art is what fuels America...fasho.”
“I create out of necessity. Out of a need to explore myself and mysurroundings. Also just a way to express myself that is non-verbal, that is more intuitive and more intimate.”
Dexter R. Jones
Made Manifest.
Dexter R. Jones
“Black art is the source. That’s it.”
“I create because I feel like it is a necessity for human development to know that they are capable of putting things into the world that didn’t exist and know that they are responsible for it. I also create because I think its necessary for other people to see that. To see that it can be done. And I think just as I said before, throughout the entire world there are different names for the higher source. There are different names for God. Everybody has their own name for it culturally, but I think the universal terminology for God is the Creator. And I think that creating is the highest level to achieving God like status. Creating things out of nothing is the closest that we as human beings can ever come to being Godly. And it is a Godly experience to be able to do that.”
#mademanifestseries
Observations
People want to see love. But they are intrigued by pain.
Dakar, Senegal
I am finally creating a visual story with these images from our trip to Dakar. Very excited about that. The story of the images will, it turns out, not be limited to Dakar but will explore much more.
Stay tuned...
#thebottomlesseye
Love
Hot Toddy Soiree.
Interview with Black History Untold
Journalist Sofiyah Ballin was kind enough to interview me for her Black History Untold Project, with images shot by friend and colleage Shawn Theodore.
We talked about blackness in the future, and what I hope to see the culture develop more of.
Check out the interview here
Image by Shawn Theodore.
Subway Stories
The woman with the cherubic face prays fervently. I am not well versed enough to know if she is Igbo or Yoruba, but she channels the spirit of her home into these supplications. It is 8:37 in the morning, and the train is full of people at the beginning of days they do not look forward to. It is crowded. They are tired. And these are often the last moments of respite prior to an inundation of emails and feigned productivity.
With every inflection, her captive audience glances at her wearily as she fills the car with her pleas. She thinks of all of these souls, yet she does not look at their bodies. Her eyes are closed, and a single rivulet of sweat creeps down her brow. Drops as of blood. A young man next to her stares angrily, visibly adjusting his headphones. He is listening to Nas, Thief's Theme.
She is unmoved. She prays for him. She prays for all of them. She prays for those on their way to work. In Jesus name. She prays for the fruit of their labor. In Jesus name. She prays for their families and the ones left behind. In Jesus name. She prays for the strength of all the passengers. In Jesus name.
When she says her last of many Amen's, she thanks the car for the opportunity, as if she had received their blessing. She sits down, and the car breathes a sigh of relief. They can now resume their podcasts, their games, their travel to jobs. The faces return to disinterest.
She however, is the only only who has already done her work. She, is beaming.
Grandpa
Compton, CA.
Spree
Afropunk
2017
