Painting on Slavery - Case Study Example

of Affiliation PAINTING ON SLAVERY Slavery is a part of human history that will certainly remain indelible in the minds of many people, whether direct or indirect victims. The perpetators may easily forget because, afterall, nobody desires to be associated with evil. However, those whose forefathers endured it would, in one way or the other, try to keep these memories even for the generations to come several years later. The above painting is just but one of the means through which horrific plights of slaves have been preserved. Basing on the writing that appears at the bottom right corner of the snapshot, the painting must have been done somewhere in 1849. In this paper, I briefly analyse the above painting in semiotic terms with much emphasis being laid on the design, color, theme, and intent. Essentiatilly, I show that this painting traces its roots to acts of slavery that were very rampant in the 19 century. Also, it was within this period that civil rights movements arose and championed for the emancipation of the blacks from slavery. The objects that are evident in the painting are meant to excemplify the suffering that the slaves head to endure in the hands of their masters. First, the painter used color as a means of differentiating between slaves and their owners. Understandably, the slaves were majorly drawn from people of African origin or rather those who are dark skinned. History of slavery traces its roots to the time when the Whites, more so those from Europe, set out to discover the world. In the event, they ferried blacks back to their home countries to serve as laborers in their plantations and industries. In respects to this, the artists has used white color, perharps combined with little elements of brown color, to portray the white man. The woman, carrying a baby and the man leaning against the tree trunk with a cap are all whites. On the other hand, the rest of the objects, starting with the one holding a whip, the one lying naked on the hard ground, and the rest are of dark complexion. Dark brown color has been used here to represent the slaves. Obviously, a quick glance into the painting differentiates between the two races respresented here. The focal point of the painting is the dark skinned man lying on the ground naked and being whipped by presumably a fellow dark skinned man. The white man is on a relaxed posture staring almost emotionless to the man being beaten. Similalrly, the rest of the objects seem not much concerned about the plight of the man on the ground except for another enchained man and the woman behind him who presumably are the next in line for a beating. For instance, the white skinned woman with a baby is totally unconcerned about what is taking place exactly in from of her. The other slaves on the background are going about their tasks with little regard to the predicament of their colleague. On the ground is a chain used to enchain the slaves. A part of the chain, the ring at one end, has been emphasised with the sharp metallic protrusion. This is what is used to ennchain the slaves and control their movements. The nake is a very sensitive part of the human body as the wind pipe runs through it. This is to imply that the slave has no other option other than to allow to be controlled while in chain or else they lose their lives as the pointed metallics projection could easily course them to loss their lives. Another notable bit of the photo is the ground at the foreground. Undoubtedly, the almost white coloration is a pointer that it must be a rocky ground. This is differentiated to the background that comprises mostly of green color that must be pointing at the plantations that the slaves work on. The hard ground is simply an indication of the hard life that the slaves had to endure. Even though the whites are on the same ground, they seem to be shielded from it by the various interventions that are only a preserve for them. For instance, the white lady is sitting on a mat that is resting on top of the rocky surface. Also, at the edges of the rocky surface on the left is another color variation. The shadow of the tree that the whites are using to shield themselves from sunny weather is extending slightly leaving the area that the man being whipped exposed to direct solar rays. Another critical element on this painting is the image of a black baby and a dog that appears at the bottom left corner of the snapshot. Relative to the white baby who is comfortably resting on the laps on her mother, the black baby is lying on the floor with the dog being its nearest companion. In respect to this, one may reach a conclusion that the black man was perceived just as any other animal, and his dignity as a human being was grossly ignored. The above painting certainly depicts the era of slavery in America where being a black colored person was more or less like a curse. In 1850s, one of the earlierst civil rights movements were born in United States and mostly advocated for the end of slavery. It was during this time period that majority of the Whites in America had blacks working in their plantations and factories. Most of the times, blacks were voiceless and the as the Whites went a step further to use fellow blacks to promote despicable acts of slavery. Furthermore, racism was the order of the day as blacks were not allowed to take charge of their political destiny through voting. It was also within this period that the blacks gradually began demanding for their rights. They were joined by moderate Whites who, through pieces of art, could no longer stand to witness fellow human suffering. In this regard, it can be concluded that this painting was meant for the concerned authorities to take note of the plight of the blacks and act immediately to free them from slavery. Works Cited Slavery in Art and Literature. Approaches to Trauma, Memory and Visuality. Berlin: Frank & Timme, 2009. Print. Farrington, Lisa E. Creating Their Own Image: The History of African-American Women Artists. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. Print. Clarke, John R. Art in the Lives of Ordinary Romans: Visual Representation and Non-Elite Viewers in Italy, 100 B.c.-A.d. 315. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002. Print. Photo retrieved from: https://www.google.com/search?q=Painting+of+slavery&client=firefox-a&hs=SPw&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=sb&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=cdBYU9yUKIbjPOaJgCg&ved=0CCkQsAQ&biw=1093&bih=488 Read More