Modern Art History - Robert Colescott - Essay Example

Robert Colescott is widely known for reworking masterpieces of American and European art history, using black characters to swap the white casts. With an explosive style and a transgressive humor, he created his own version of Vincent Van Goghs masterpiece "Potato Eaters" into "Eat Dem Taters." The main contemporary issue in this piece of art is about race. Its all about perception where he tries to interpret the photo to create and reveal the hidden meaning. The peasants eating their meal in Van Goghs piece portrays how happy they were which is contrary to Colescotts point of view.

He believes that the artist tried to show how life was ruthless and challenging to them more so the black people. In "Eat Dem Taters," Colescott swapped the Dutch peasants with cartoonish black sharecroppers, an exaggerated image opposing the happy darky myth to show that the myth was illogical and ridiculous. The reason why he re-creates older masterpieces is to bring out the hidden understanding of what was happening in the past from a racial perspective. He also tries to reveal how different races were treated and how life was to them more so the black people that artists in the past pieces of art were not exposing.

Response Colescott work should not be criticized; instead its worth appreciation and praises. The paintings are not directed to black people, but they revolve about perception. He interprets how life was to black people during the past days only that he exaggerates the images to reveal the meaning in a more clear way. One day Mr. Colescott was quoted in an interview saying, "Im very happy and proud of the fact that most people get what Im after." This also means that people should not look his work from a negative point of view; instead they should see from a positive side.

References Mocking Black Stereotypes, a Black Artist Makes Waves. (1989, May 22). Retrieved July 16, 2015, from http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20120359,00.html