A suite of large scale drawings with mixed-media, intimately small-scaled light boxes and two sculptures comprises The Boy Project, now in development. The work responds to my young son’s tendency to depict and enact violence in play and art making. By creating a space for art to intersect with experiential parenting, this project explores the currency of violence in our culture and the related challenges facing Black boys and men. Consistent with my previous work, the project engages specific histories and cultural and religious practices of the African Diaspora. The act of making and sharing each piece serves to invoke protections over our young boys and to provoke dialogue about violence, cultural/ancestral memory and the psychic dynamics of protective nurturing.
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