Michael Ray Charles was born in 1967 in Lafayette, Louisiana, and graduated from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, in 1985. In college, he studied advertising design and illustration, which I was originally very interested in. He, and I both, moved to painting as a preferred medium. Mr. Charles went on to receive his MFA degree from the University of Houston in 1993.
Just this past January, Black Issues in Higher Education magazine recognized Michael Ray Charles as one of ten scholars who are doing innovative research in their field of study, reaching out to shape the next generation of scholars, or committing themselves to working with communities and students of color.
His graphically styled paintings investigate racial stereotypes drawn from a history of American advertising, product packaging, billboards, radio jingles, and television commercials. Images such as Aunt Jemima and Uncle Tom, are incorporated into the artist’s work as he presents a contemporary impression of our world through the eyes and insights of a young black man. Charles draws comparisons between Sambo, Mammy, and minstrel images of an earlier era and contemporary mass-media portrayals of black youths, celebrities, and athletes (images he sees as a constant in the American subconscious). “Stereotypes have evolved,” he notes. “I’m trying to deal with present and past stereotypes in the context of today’s society.”
“In each of his paintings, notions of beauty, ugliness, nostalgia, and violence emerge and converge, reminding us that we cannot divorce ourselves from a past that has led us to where we are, who we have become, and how we are portrayed.”
His diptych, To See Or Not To See “After/ Before Black,” was inspired by a suite of lithographs produced in the 19th century by Currier and Ives. The printshop’s slogan boasts, a publisher of “Cheap and Popular Pictures” which included categories such as Sports, Hunting Scenes, Trains, Historical Portraits, and Religious Themes. Another category was Darktown, in which the many racist stereotypes of the day were depicted in humorous situations. Charles’ before-and-after paintings have a similar antique as these images and they modernize the sentiment with which we as viewers come to view these stereotypes of black people.
Charles believes that society treats black people one of two ways, as either entertainers or criminals. In an interview with Black Issues of Higher Education magazine he says, “I’ve always been searching for a better representation or understanding of what ‘blackness’ is, or was, or may be,” said Charles. “We are not yet getting master of fine arts degrees, and having galleries, and becoming patrons, and doing the things that are on the A-list of creative cultural production. That’s a major challenge to overcome.”
Sorry this posting is a bit late, here some questions to consider:
1. How does Charles' use text and color convey the idea of "freedom" and how does that relate to what he is trying to achieve with his work?
2. By using powerful, recognizable imagery, such as Sambo, is Charles critiquing or perpetuating a stereotype?
and 3. How would you view the work if you did not know who had painted it?
2 comments:
It is interesting because in many of the artists we have looked at, we have had to consider what their work suggests and signifies. For example, in some of the work by Yuskavage we discussed whether her work promoted the ideal female body (or porn star image) or promoted the opposite and took a feminist stand. Or if she intended any other meanings...
Michael Ray Charles' work is similar, as Carroll pointed out, his work can also have multiple meanings and be interpreted in many ways. Personally, if I were to look at his art, not knowing that the artist was African American or that he wanted to address racial issues, my feeling is that I would understand the general idea of what his work is trying to convey. Which is not the promotion of black stereotypes, in a negative way, but instead promotes the idea of thinking about those stereotypes and comparing and analyzing the past as well as looking at today.
I agree with Torie. Knowing what I know about modern artwork, I realize no one in their right mind would create artwork promoting black stereotypes in the way Charles does, and thus I figure even if I didn't know who was making the artwork, I'd think they were trying to critique black stereotypical images seen in our society of the past. His images combined with contradicting text (at least in my mind) of 'freedom' and 'bang bang' make me realize he is trying to say something about black culture as a whole. I get the feeling his work is talking about how blacks are now free, in a sense, but how there is still violence being committed towards them and by them.
~ben
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