Outspoken Mexican painter David Alfaro Siqueiros thought that truly substantive art came from a combination of political and aesthetic ideals mixed with modern techniques, as depicted in his 1947 work, Cain in the United States. I reworked that image using the ShortKnee, but I believe the colours have greatly reduced the sinister feel of Siqueiros’. Tweaked in sepia however, Cain revisited, is more ominous.
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| Cain revisited |
So far, I have translated the works of over 19 artists on war, migration, desolation and isolation, in particular with reference to works including or featuring pierrot, harlequin, clown or acrobat figures, precursor to our present day ShortKnee. ShortKnee can be traced back to the spoken word traditions of the West African Chantuelle, oral libraries whose recollections made bearable the suffering of slaves on the plantations of Grenada, fused with French Pierrot elements, and wrapped in six and a half yards of vulgar fabric that is breathtaking in sunlight masquerade. Once a disguise and a way to compromise, the ShortKnee is today, in this artist’s opinion, the iconic instrument of the history of Grenada, and a subject worthy of vigorous visual artistic study.
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| Cain revisited 2 |
Tempera and oil pastel on posterboard 30 in by 26 in.