The art of Race
December 17, 2006 – 10:51 pmI love the idea of creating art. I’d forgotten that I had this dude in my collection of links: www.nathangibbs.com
Crayola Monologues
http://www.nathangibbs.com/crayola-monologues/
Crayola Monologues (2003) uses the crayon as a human metaphor for exploring color and identity in the United States. This animated video features crayons expressing how color hierarchies have shaped their lives. These crayons live in a world much like our own, complete with prejudice, class boundaries, social hierarchies and those who fall between the lines. Crayola Monologues also reveals the politics behind Crayola label changes, and gives a voice to the previously unheard perspective of crayons.
Race Cube
http://www.nathangibbs.com/race-cube/
Race Cube (2003) remodels the classic Rubik’s Cube with a racial twist. Rather than the abstract color separation of the original, the Race Cube poses a more concrete challenge: aligning images of people into categories based on race. Race Cube challenges not only the player’s ability to determine the race to which each face belongs, but also the fundamental assumption that distinct racial lines exist.
Self-Portrait
http://www.nathangibbs.com/self-portrait/
Self-Portrait (2002) questions purity, identity and identification, consumer culture, as well as the use of skin color as racial signifier in the United States. The work displays Ralph Lauren paint swatches arranged in a grid and held between two sheets of transparent acrylic. Together, the colored swatches form an image of the artist’s face. Self-Portrait is not only a representation of identity in terms of the artist’s self-image, but also a symbol of how people unknowingly frame their judgments using a limited palette.
