Stopped and Frisked

In the second painting in this series, I was still developing an understanding as to what "this" was. What was drawing me to the canvas.



Around the time I painted this the 2016 election was in full swing. I made my arguments to my friends and family. To anyone who would engage on Facebook or twitter. I presented source backed information, well thought out philosophy, and even would resort to sourcing "their" preferred news channel. I could show words out of "their" guys mouth, and still be called "fake news".


My outlet once again became frantically painted symbols. I covered the canvass with tiny badges of all colors. I began highlighting the yellows and a road appeared. I imagined all the different people and shoes that have scuffed the road. I paint the scuff mark of a janitor, a business man, a homeless child. I imagine a tall black man walking down the path. I wonder if he really presents any added danger, relative to the others who have walked this path. I imagine a world where this gets him stoped, treated differently, due to twisted statistics Im not sure I agree with.

I paint myself on a bench watching. Wondering how that is different than the indifference we show as a nation. On the bench, frozen in inaction.




I started separating my paintings then. The outline around the bench represents a cut out. A separate scene, removed from the conflict. I see them almost like comic book panels, but in my paintings the panel boundaries have real life representations. And it doesn't matter if I paint the black line or not, In his inaction it doesn't matter if the man on the bench is their or not. The boundaries exist regardless. Can you see the boundary? Have you felt it? Should we push back?

Best,
Brandon