Terrence Cummings' 'Art for Change' Exhibition Explores Race, Class, and Humanity

Art as a Tool for Social Change

• 🎨 Art is viewed as a powerful vehicle for change, serving as both a mirror to societal experiences and an inciter of dialogue.
• 💡 Cummings believes art can make complex topics like race and class less divisive, opening avenues for more cordial discussions.
• 🖼️ The exhibition "Art for Change" features 15 new print works addressing social issues such as ICE arrests, civil rights, and mass incarceration.

The 'Stronger Together' Piece

• 🤝 The artwork "Stronger Together" visually represents men and women arm-in-arm, forming a human chain, inspired by the unity of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.
• 🌍 This piece aims to encapsulate how diverse people came together to fight for civil rights for the entire nation.
• 🎨 Cummings describes his artistic process as layering colors, tracing paper, and textures to build new colors and depth, starting from a charcoal drawing.

Commentary on Clarence Thomas and American Identity

• ⚖️ The piece "Clarence" depicts Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas with a ladder, highlighting the perceived hypocrisy of his use of affirmative action while later working to roll it back.
• 🇺🇸 A triptych places an enslaved person, an incarcerated person, and a deported person within the American flag, serving as a reminder of the historical experiences of marginalized groups.
• 👶 "Born American" features children of different shades wrapped in the American flag, a piece that surprisingly generated pushback, emphasizing the artist's message of embracing diversity and shared American identity.

Shared Humanity and Artistic Education

• ❤️ Cummings' art consistently revolves around the theme of shared humanity, emphasizing that forces trying to divide people are countered by the strength found in diversity and working together.
• 🧑‍🏫 When teaching students, Cummings focuses on helping them convey concepts visually, stressing the importance of executing conceptual work alongside creating beautiful imagery.
• 💰 He also educates students on the importance of licensing their work to ensure they can profit from their creations beyond the initial creation phase.