Part 2: Kara Walker, Resurrection with Patrons

• Three etchings unite to create a triptych bringing with it religious connotations and importance to the middle scene
• Use of profile emphasizes the distinct stereotypical racial features, such as large protruding lips
• The patrons are carved out of a dark space rather than a white space allows Walker to add dimension and their own level of importance
• Patrons themselves serve to highlight the main narrative and the protagonist in the middle etching
• The woman’s hand reaches forward the bending of the elbow in contrast to having the arm completely outstretched seems to imply a desire to be a part of the scene, or an act of devotion.
• The male figure does not reach and instead illuminates the scene.
• Placement of the wooden planks act as a bridge into the scene. The diagonals created  create a sharp dipping angle that opens the scene to the viewer rather than closing it off.
• Pattern of dark wood textured pieces is broken by free-flowing form that is a splash of white and gray
• The slanted lines of the landscape draws viewer’s eye deeper into the canvas while creating 3-dimension through a sense of receding space.
• Etching divided into 3 spaces: the fore-, middle-. and background.
  • Foreground: wooden planks create a sharp dipping angle that opens the scene to the viewer rather than closing it off.
  • Middleground: contains the main action of the piece and houses the central female figure. Almost all figures are in caught is some sort of motion. The pattern departs with the lone male figure on the right. He stands separated with a straight spine, body facing the background with his head tilted towards the female figure. His stillness mimicking that seen in the background, guiding the viewer into the background of the piece.
  • Background: contains the least action, but is still visually interesting and contains elements that highlight the central figure in the middle ground. The triangular clouds and the white space bringing out the deepness of the black used for the larger figure and her features while the shadows cast on the still ocean frame her lower body. The horizon line creating some contrast to the diagonal and curving lines seen in the fore-and middle ground with the use of sharp vertical peaks rising in the distance.
• Using hierarchic scale, the stature of the rising female figure in the middle etching marks her for importance in contrast to the figures around her.
• The female figure has a darker coloring in relation to those around her. The  smaller figures are lighter in nature- off black- whereas the main figure is a deeper black. Nothing else in the piece is as dark in color as the female figure.
• Positioning of clouds and figures around her mark the large figure out for importance. The triangular shape of clouds emphasizes by creating a frame that centers her head as the focal point of the piece and brings out her darkness through the white and grayness of the clouds.
• The smaller figures contort in relation to the large figure, creating triangular areas of flow in which the eyes travels
  • The figures on the left bend until their bodies until they are almost parallel with the ground. The ropes/ lines the figures are grasping creates a connection between them on the ground and the where when viewing either group draws the viewer’s eyes towards the woman.
  • The figures on the woman’s right are connected through her back. They push her upward, their elongated bodies creating another triangular space that constructs a path viewing from the ground to the figures and then upward towards the woman. These paths of viewing create movements, expressed through the tilt of the central figure body and the tilting of the figures that are hoisting her from the ground.
• The inclusion of the eye on the woman gives expression and life to the figure, it distinguishes her from an otherwise inanimate shrine.
• The darkness of the piece, the heavy use of blacks and grays, invites the viewer to take a closer look. From further away the detailing in the smaller figures, such as the overdrawn lips on the child figure, and the background are washed away when compared to viewing the etchings closer.
  • Concept of viewing and the levels of viewing presents itself multiple times in the work of Kara Walker.
  • The idea of viewing a work and taking in how the visual elements work together to create a beautiful aesthetic, and then delving deeper into the actual construction and minute details of each element.

 

 

Kara Walker’s Resurrection with Patrons (2017) is composed of inter playing elements of line, color, and form that come together to emphasize the figure of the protagonists in the main scene of the three panels and create depth. Three etchings unite to create a triptych bringing with it religious connotations and importance to the middle scene. The shows a departure from Walker’s distinct silhouette style, but still carries some elements of the style. The figures in the scene are placed in profile, a characteristic of the silhouette style, but lacks the stark black and white contrast. The use of profile emphasizes the distinct features of the characters in the etching and places on the use of stereotypical racial features, such as large protruding lips, that were historically used for black caricatures in the 18th to mid-20th century. Instead of employing the classical style of silhouette where the outline of the figure is in black and placed against a white background—the patrons are outlined in white and carved against a black background. The design choice allowed Walker to add dimension to these two characters using light gray shadows that accentuate their clothing and their exaggerated features while giving the patrons their own level of importance.  Although the action of the piece is not focused on the patrons, the attention to clothing and addition of detail to the body and face give the patrons their own visual stage. At the same time, the patrons themselves serve to highlight the main narrative and the protagonist in the middle etching. The female and male figures face the middle in profile with their arms extended. The positioning of the hands and arms are an important element to note as they add to the story. The woman’s hand reaches forward, the motion implicated by the bend of the elbow and the gray wash of shadow that creates a break between her breast and arm. The bending of the elbow in contrast to having the arm completely outstretched seems to imply a desire to be a part of scene, or an act of devotion. The male figure does not reach and instead illuminates the scene. The illumination suggested by the candle he holds and legitimatized by in color of the wooden planks in his panel. Unlike the planks seen in the first two etchings which are quite dark, the planks in his panel are gray and the detail on them can be seen easier. The candle acting as a bridge into the scene.

Besides the patrons, the placement of the wooden planks act as a bridge into the scene. The diagonals created by the wooden planks create a sharp dipping angle that opens the scene to the viewer rather than closing it off. The pattern of dark wood textured pieces is broken by the introduction of a free-flowing form that stands in contrast to the linear darkness around it with its splash of white and gray. The slanted lines of the landscape aids in drawing the viewer’s eye deeper into the canvas while creating 3-dimension through a sense of receding space. The textured wooden pieces and the placed the white and gray patch produces an invisible line that originates from the angle of the planks to a rush of white and gray which serves as guide to the large female figure and into the middle ground.The middle ground contains the main action of the piece and houses the central female figure. Almost all figures are in caught is some sort of motion. The smaller figures lean in angles that showcase exertion, those to the front pulling while those to the right push. The protagonist herself is situation in a diagonal line that indicates motion and continues this trend of nonlinear line use. The pattern departs when the attention is shifted to the lone male figure on the right. He stands separated with a straight spine, his body facing the background while his head tilting towards the female figure. His stillness mimicking that seen in the background which guides the viewer into the background of the piece. The background contains the least action, but is still visually interesting and contains elements that highlight the central figure in the middle ground. The triangular clouds and the white space bringing out the deepness of the black used for the larger figure and her features while the shadows cast on the still ocean frame her lower body. The horizon line creating some contrast to the diagonal and curving lines seen in the fore-and middle ground with the use of sharp vertical peaks rising in the distance.

Using hierarchic scale, the stature of the rising female figure in the middle etching marks her for importance in contrast to the figures around her.  She towers over the other figures in the etching and has a darker coloring in relation to those around her. Looking closer at the piece, the smaller figures are lighter in nature whereas the main figure is a deeper black. In fact, nothing else in the piece is as dark in color as the female figure-they are off black . Besides scale and coloring, the positioning of the clouds and figures around her mark the large figure out for importance. The triangular shape of clouds emphasizes by creating a frame that centers her head as the focal point of the piece and brings out her darkness through the white and grayness of the clouds.The smaller figures contort in relation to the large figure, creating triangular areas of flow in which the eyes travels. The figures on the left of the woman bend until their bodies are almost parallel with the ground creating a triangular space of emphasis. The ropes/ lines the figures are grasping creates a connection between them on the ground and the where when viewing either group draws the viewer’s eyes towards the woman. The figures on the woman’s right also frame her in a similar fashion through their connection with her back. They push her upward, their elongated bodies creating another triangular space that constructs a path viewing from the ground to the figures and then upward towards the woman. These paths of viewing create movements, expressed through the tilt of the central figure body and the tilting of the figures that are hoisting her from the ground. The inclusion of the eye on the woman gives expression and life to the figure, it distinguishes her from an otherwise inanimate shrine.

The darkness of the piece, the heavy use of blacks and grays, invites the viewer to take a closer look. From further away the detailing in the smaller figures, such as the overdrawn lips on the child figure, and the background are washed away when compared to viewing the etchings closer. The concept of viewing and the levels of viewing presents itself multiple times in the work of Kara Walker. The idea of viewing a work and taking in how the visual elements work together to create a beautiful aesthetic, and then delving deeper into the actual construction and minute details of each element.