Acrylic and Collage on Canvas
20 x 16 in
51 x 41 cm
US $ 2,200
This piece from the Mumbo Jumbo series further explores the interplay between personal identity and societal pressure. The figure, once again entangled in the fire hose, seems almost subsumed by the chaotic abstract forms that swirl around it. However, there’s a different energy here, as playful blue shapes reminiscent of hands cut through the otherwise fragmented composition, hinting at gestures of resistance or escape. The bright orange and green hues, set against bold blacks and blues, continue to evoke the dissonance between vibrant life and the constraining forces that surround the figure.
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This piece from the Mumbo Jumbo series further explores the interplay between personal identity and societal pressure. The figure, once again entangled in the fire hose, seems almost subsumed by the chaotic abstract forms that swirl around it. However, there’s a different energy here, as playful blue shapes reminiscent of hands cut through the otherwise fragmented composition, hinting at gestures of resistance or escape. The bright orange and green hues, set against bold blacks and blues, continue to evoke the dissonance between vibrant life and the constraining forces that surround the figure.
The fire hose, a symbol of violent suppression, again takes center stage, coiling around the figure in a mass of peach and white patterns, its presence reminiscent of past struggles during the Civil Rights Movement. The playful use of emojis and symbols, like a caution sign and floating shoes, heightens the contrast between the real and the symbolic, drawing attention to how identity and oppression are experienced in both physical and digital spaces.
As with the other works in this series, the title Mumbo Jumbo calls back to Ishmael Reed’s novel, where the distortion and confusion of African American identity are explored. The fragmented body, trapped within the chaotic flow of abstract forms, mirrors the novel’s themes of disruption and the obfuscation of personal agency by societal forces. Yet, within this chaos, there’s a sense of humor and resistance, as the blue hands and floating signs signal moments of pause and reflection amidst the swirling disorder.