On view by appointment through March 29th.
WORDS BY TERRENCE WATSON
AIN'T NO SAINT
BLACKNESS IS BEAUTY. BLACKNESS IS LOVE. BLACKNESS IS SURVIVAL.
WE ALL GROW UP THE SAME.
IT’S WHY 500 BLACK STRANGERS CAN BE AT A PARTY AND PULL OFF THE ELECTRIC SLIDE WITHOUT MISSING A BEAT. IT’S WHY BLACK TWITTER EXISTS*. IT’S WHY A BLACK PERSON BORN IN NEW YORK CITY CAN MOVE TO PORTLAND, A PLACE CONSIDERED THE WHITEST CITY IN THE COUNTRY, AND MEET FELLOW CHILDREN OF THE AFRICAN DIASPORA, AND FEEL AT HOME.
BUT WE’RE NOT A MONOLITH.
NO MATTER THE ABRAHAMIC RELIGION WE PRACTICE, WE STILL TAP IN WITH OUR ANCESTORS. THAT SPIRITUAL CONNECTIVE SENSE HAS NEVER LEFT OUR SOULS. IT’S WHY THE HOLY GHOST HITS DIFFERENT IN BLACK CHURCHES. YOU’RE WITNESSING A MESSAGE FROM GOD AND THOSE BEFORE US. THAT ENERGY IS REAL.
YOU REACH ANOTHER LEVEL, ONE THAT DOESN’T REALLY HAVE WORDS TO DESCRIBE IT, ONCE YOU’VE BECOME RESPONSIBLE FOR LIFE. AND WHEN YOUR SEEDS HAVE SEEDS, YOU’RE TASK OF PASSING DOWN WISDOM - ON TOP OF SURVIVAL - IS EVEN GREATER.
ANTHONY TAYLOR’S WORK IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO RECLAIMING IMAGES AND PERSPECTIVES THAT ARE TRUE, DETAILED AND AUTHENTIC. SO, WHILE I, TERRENCE WATSON, LIKE TO THINK OF MYSELF AS A DECENT ENOUGH WRITER, I CAN’T TELL THE STORY OF BLACK MATRIARCHAL WISDOM BECAUSE I AM NOT A BLACK WOMAN. SO WHILE I’LL BE ASSISTING YOU THROUGH THIS EXPERIENCE A BIT, I’M LETTING YOU HEAR FROM THE WOMAN WHO PUT ME ON GAME: MY MOTHER, TONI WATSON.
SHE RAISED ME, MY BROTHERS AND TWO GENERATIONS OF EXTENDED FAMILY. AND SINCE SHE LEARNED FROM HER OLDER COUSINS, AUNTS, MOTHER, AND GRANDMOTHERS, ON TOP OF NOW BEING A GRANDMA HERSELF, IT’S ONLY RIGHT SHE GIVE YOU WISDOM THROUGH THE ARCHETYPES.
THE MATRIARCH
IN YORUBA BASED RELIGIONS, NOTHING WORKS WITHOUT THE GODDESS OSHUN. SHE REPRESENTS THE DIVINE FEMININE, THE WATER WE DRINK, THE FERTILE LAND WE SOW, THE LOVE WE KNOW. FOR TAYLOR, RELIGION GIVES PEOPLE POWER, HOPE, INSPIRATION AND PEACE. GRANDMAS DO THAT TOO AND THROUGH GOD, THEY TOUCH YOUR SPIRIT.
THE MATRIARCH PERMEATES THROUGH EVERYTHING. HER GARMENT, HER AURA, IT ALL RELATES BACK TO HER. SHE GIVES THE CHILDREN TOOLS AND TEACHES THEM TO USE THEM IN ANYWAY THAT ENSURES THEIR SURVIVAL. HER COVERED EYES DON’T MEAN SHE’S NOT WATCHING, BUT THEY’RE ANOTHER LESSON. SHE’S NOTICING EVERYTHING YOU DO, BUT NEEDS TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN READ SITUATIONS WHEN YOU THINK YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN, SO YOU KNOW HOW TO MOVE WHEN YOU TRULY ARE.
TONI WATSON:
“She has many different roles at each stage. The first stage is nurturing, teaching, guiding, counseling and showing love in her way. Cooking is how I show love for my family. Stage two is stepping in the gap for all her children, whatever that looks like and doing whatever is needed. The last stage is reverence. The Matriarch is one that has earned her place. She gets to sit and be spoiled and enjoy her fruit.”
THE KNIGHT
FORCEFUL IN NATURE, WHERE GRACE IS MISSING, THE KNIGHT USES BRAVERY AND BRUTE TO GET THINGS DONE. THE KNIGHT WILL NOT BE MOVED EASILY. HE IS THE HARDEST TO HURT, BUT IF HE IS HURT, IT’S A POTENTIALLY DEADLY BLOW. STAYING TOO HEADSTRONG MIGHT COST YOU YOUR HEAD.
TONI WATSON:
“As a Black person, everyday you walk out of your door you have to get your mind right, and prepare to fight the world with your full armor. As a mother in general, you feel the weight heavy to teach, prepare and protect. Each task is of equal importance and must be done until you feel satisfied that your kids have mastered the fight.
As a Black mother there’s other tasks which prepare them for a world that hates and somehow reveres them, and to know how powerful that is and teach them to move just to survive. The heartbreaking part is you can’t show them your hurt until they're older. When they begin to see you and appreciate you as their person. The person God tasked with giving them all that.”
THE ARCHER
REPRESENTING THE BALANCING ACT THAT IS BLACKNESS, THE ARCHER POSSESS THE SHARP TOOLS NEEDED FOR PERSONAL GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENT. THE ARCHER IS SWIFT, BOTH OF THE MIND AND THE BODY, AND IS NEVER DISTRACTED AWAY FROM THE TARGET. WHILE NOT RESTRICTED BY ARMOR, THAT ALSO MEANS THEY’RE THE MOST VULNERABLE.
TONI WATSON:
“As a parent, you’re constantly swatting objects away for your kid. You would take an arrow for them, but when you shoot one back, it’s to kill. So your objective is to protect them and let everyone know not this one!
The flip side is you want to raise your kids to never be the antagonist because that’s what they expect. Teach them to defend themselves in any arena, both of the physical and of the mind, but know true power lies in the latter.
The world hates to find intelligent, successful Black people. I needed my kids to always be mindful of that. Walk knowing that, and even let it drive them a little bit.
These tasks are not easy. But as a parent, there’s nothing more rewarding than seeing your kid transform into successful adults that can navigate being kind, lionhearted and resourceful. As a grandparent, it’s a double dose because your seed has taught their seed what they’ve learned.
And you can put your bow and arrow down, and just love them.
*YOU’RE WELCOME, ADVERTISERS, MEDIA + MARKETERS.
RENAISSANCE ART
TAYLOR’S INTENTION IS TO INFORM. AS WE GROW AND AWAKEN IN SOCIETY, NEW THINGS ARE SLOWLY REVEALED. WHILE RENAISSANCE ART SELDOM DEPICTS BLACK PEOPLE IN POSITIVE LIGHTS, THE TRUTH IS WE WERE A PART OF EUROPEAN LIFE DURING THIS TIME PERIOD IN A MYRIAD OF WAYS. HISTORY SPEAKS TO THIS (HOW THE HELL DO YOU THINK SHAKESPERE WROTE OTHELLO WITHOUT EVER SEEING OR INTERACTING WITH ANY BLACK PEOPLE? MAKE IT MAKE SENSE).
IT’S VERY INTENTIONAL FOR TAYLOR TO RECLAIM DIVERSITY IN EUROPE. MUCH LIKE MODERN DAY PORTLAND, DESPITE WHAT WE’VE BEEN TOLD, YES, THERE WERE BLACK PEOPLE THERE.