October is Black History Month, a time to recognise and celebrate the invaluable contributions of Black people in the UK and around the world.
Northampton artist Cordell Garfield shares the inspiration behind his ‘Black Icons’ collection.
Tupac
One of the most influential rappers of all time and important in hip hop culture, US rapper Tupac’s global impact as an icon of activism is up there with Bob Marley, John Lennon and Bob Dylan. Tupac addressed social injustice, poverty and police brutality in his music, and was killed in a drive-by shooting in 1996. “I wanted my painting to take the iconography of Tupac, a mixture of thug, ladies’ man and Black folk hero, and turn it into something more sensitive and how he might have looked and felt in his quieter moments.”
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian novelist and activist well known for her work on feminism, class, culture, race and religion in the post colonial world. Her phrase ‘We should all be Feminists’ from a talk in 2012 has been adopted everywhere from t-shirts to being sampled in Beyonce’s 2013 song ‘Flawless’. “As a central figure in post colonial feminist literature, I was drawn to this strong profile of Adichie, and wanted to make a highly worked pencil drawing emphasising the strength and poise of her profile.”
Malcolm X
A prominent African American revolutionary, Muslim minister and civil rights activist Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965. More confrontational than Martin Luther King, he advocated African Americans control their own destiny and rights regardless of the methods used ‘by any means necessary’. “The painting for me shows a more reflective side of Malcolm X, one in which it seems he already knew his destiny. In his autobiography he prophetically says
Each day I live as if I’m already dead… I do not expect to live long enough to read this book in its finished form.”
Attitude
“Attitude is a painting exploring hidden narratives and inner psychology behind a portrait. Based on sketches and photos of a life drawing model I decided that the painting should present a black woman as both confident and sassy, and sure of her place in the world. Nobody knows what she’s thinking, but it’s likely to be assertive and confrontational.”
Linton Kwesi Johnson
Linton Kwesi Johnson is a British based dub poet performing his Jamaican patois poetry over dub-reggae music. He came to the UK in 1963 following his Windrush generation parents. His poetry is political commentary on racism and being an African-Caribbean in the UK. “He was particularly active during the late 1970s/early 1980s during the Thatcher government where I came across his poetry and music. This painting of Johnson takes me back to the time when his work was at its peak, challenging the racism of the time within society, government and police force.”
CORDELL GARFIELD
Cordell is a Northampton based artist, working from his studio at the NN Contemporary Gallery Space in Fetter Street. Mainly self-taught and primarily an oil painter he uses traditional classical atelier techniques with a contemporary feel. Portraits and figurative work feature strongly in his art, and he is well known for his strong evocative portraits and musical icons. He will use life drawing sketches, digital media and photographs to create his paintings, and through this approach embraces both the traditional and contemporary. Aside from portraits, he also finds inspiration in the light, colours and shapes of the landscapes that he encounters, particularly the beautiful Northamptonshire countryside.
He is currently the President of the Northampton Town and County Art Society, and he has exhibited extensively within the county and beyond, notably in London and at the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. His work is held in collections outside the UK, and he was awarded the Peoples’ Choice Prize at the Alfred East Gallery as part of their Open 13 exhibition.
Commissions
He accepts commissions and is happy to discuss specific requests. More examples of his work can be seen on his website:
http://www.cordellgarfield.com/
http://www.cordellgarfield.com/
or Facebook and Instagram:
https://www.facebook.com/cordellgarfieldfineart
https://www.facebook.com/cordellgarfieldfineart
https://www.instagram.com/cordellgarfieldartist
Workshops
Cordell is an experienced tutor running many workshops specialising in painting portraits and landscapes in oils which are a great introduction to painting in oils, but also ideal for refreshing skills for more experienced artists. To book a place see details below:
http://www.cordellgarfield.com/workshops/
Contact Cordell for more details on email: cordellgarfield10@gmail.com or 07944 395792