Black Monolith II (For Ralph Ellison)
Jack Whitten
Contemporary Art
Made in the year of Ralph Ellison’s death, Black Monolith II (For Ralph Ellison) is a homage to the author of Invisible Man (published in 1952) that expands the possibilities of painting. It is part of a larger series by Jack Whitten honoring black visionaries in politics and the arts, many of whom (including Ellison) Whitten knew.
To create this mosaic painting, Whitten made tiles composed of organic materials and acrylic paint and applied them to a canvas. The tiles each have a unique chemistry, with embedded materials that carry their own individual significance. According to Whitten, the figure’s acrylic-encased razor-blade mouth refers to the “double edge of black identity,” which “cuts both ways.”
The illumination radiating from the figure conveys the essence of one of Whitten’s favorite passages from Invisible Man:
Nothing, storm or flood, must get in the way of our need for light and ever more and brighter light. The truth is the light and the light is the truth.
To create this mosaic painting, Whitten made tiles composed of organic materials and acrylic paint and applied them to a canvas. The tiles each have a unique chemistry, with embedded materials that carry their own individual significance. According to Whitten, the figure’s acrylic-encased razor-blade mouth refers to the “double edge of black identity,” which “cuts both ways.”
The illumination radiating from the figure conveys the essence of one of Whitten’s favorite passages from Invisible Man:
Nothing, storm or flood, must get in the way of our need for light and ever more and brighter light. The truth is the light and the light is the truth.
MEDIUM
Acrylic, molasses, copper, salt, coal, ash, chocolate, onion, herbs, rust, eggshell, razor blade on canvas
DATES
1994
DIMENSIONS
58 x 52 in. (147.3 x 132.1 cm) (show scale)
SIGNATURE
Proper right side of canvas/stretcher: "Black Monolith II: For R.W. Ellison April 1994 J. Whitten"
COLLECTIONS
Contemporary Art
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
EXHIBITIONS
ACCESSION NUMBER
2014.65
CREDIT LINE
William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund
RIGHTS STATEMENT
© Jack Whitten
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CAPTION
Jack Whitten (American, 1939-2018). Black Monolith II (For Ralph Ellison), 1994. Acrylic, molasses, copper, salt, coal, ash, chocolate, onion, herbs, rust, eggshell, razor blade on canvas, 58 x 52 in. (147.3 x 132.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund, 2014.65. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Image Courtesy of Alexander Gray Associates, CUR.2014.65_Alexander_Gray_Associates_photograph.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, CUR.2014.65_Alexander_Gray_Associates_photograph.jpg. Image Courtesy of Alexander Gray Associates, 2014
"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
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