The Boy With The Pearl Earring

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Day 7:  Jean-Michael Basquiat was known for his use of crowns and grotesque way of painting. His crowns paired with these violent and expressive paintings are a way of transforming the regular into the royal. Turning everyday individuals of society and culture into a work of art, honored as the kings and queens of our society. How could this be seen as an interpretation in photo? Take out the color and focus on the subject. Photograph as a painting. Use crowns.

Day 8:

How does image convey the weight of colorism and white supremacy in the united states and abroad. White people saturate the media, the news, our politics, our government, and even art. The ideals of minorities in this country are often silenced over the overwhelming amount of representation of white people in this country. Oddly, our country is more diverse and complex than one would interpret from watching any tv show or taking a closer look at our government and current administration. Here a black man is placed as the subject of the piece. You cannot look away and you cannot ignore the beauty in diversity. He is vulnerable, sensitive, beautiful. Unlike the portrayal in the media and socially constructed stereotypes. How can they be broken? Representation is key. Intersectionality must be normalized.

Day 9:

What if the girl with the pearl earring was not a girl? What if gender played no role? What if it was titled the person with the pearl earring? What would the imagery look like without a Eurocentric lens? I think that if she was brought into climate of today’s society, she/he/they would look very different. We as a society must stop creating borders and limits on individuals free expression based on social constructs and stereotypes based on race, gender and sexuality.

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