These visceral portraits depict the civil rights activists who rode buses throughout the Jim Crow South, beginning in May 1961, to challenge the federal government's disinterest in ending discrimination. This portrait series tells the stories of 80 individuals who played a crucial role in bringing these enforcement failures, and the racial cruelties, to a national audience, as told through their mugshots.
Freedom riders and bus boycotters
ARTIST STATEMENT
These are extraordinary humans, Freedom Riders from the east, west, south and north, who didn't stand by idle. They thought things out and took careful and well planned action, a crucial element that made for their success. For this I want to celebrate them, tell their stories to all who will listen. This show is dedicated to the beloved community.
Paintings from mug shots of famous and non-famous people arrested during two incidents amidst the civil rights movement demanding desegregation and equal rights for all. The original inspiration was mug shots I found on www.thesmokinggun.com. The significance of the two dates is that you can see that in the 5 years that passed between the two incidents, the civil rights movement matured: the raw anger became organized and focused and better dressed, but also the police photography became more sophisticated: the subject matters are photographed using 2 lights, they're standing and their height is visible. The plaques from the 1961 arrests carry much more information: place and date of arrest, whereas in 1956 the men and women arrested were merely sitting down and carrying numbers.”
- Charlotta Janssen
Series painted between 2009 and 2011.
