Karen Walker

Karen walker is an African American artist who focuses on painting, silhouettist, printmaker, installation artist, and film-maker. Explores through the themes of Race, gender, sexuality, violence and identity.

 

 

Karen waker currently lives in New York City and was born in California in 1969. Her father Lary Walker is an Artist and professor and she recalls her father’s influence as “one of my earliest memories involves sitting on my dad’s lap in his studio in the garage of our house and watching him draw. From this early memory of Karen walker, she remembered of thinking ‘i want to do that, too, and I pretty much decided then and there at age 2 and a half or 3 years old thatIwas an artist like Dad.

Karen walker is best known for her black silhouette design against a white background which takes the theme of capturing the American history of slavery and racism. Portrayed by characters that tell a gruesome story of differentiation of the higher class of which was presumably the white characters against the black characters. . Karen walker suggested in an interview that her purpose of these black silhouette was generated with her as an artist, black women and the history of it and the narratives created from being also a Southerner.

 

Karen walker- ” you’ve got the positives and your negative and i really liked that dialect  there”.

The historical context of  her black silhouette suggested in delicate cutouts of black sullhoete displayed  on while space creates powerful visual representation that would certainly help to refer to my Anthology text by Hannah Ponting – Toni Morrison’s ‘ A Mercy. My Anthology text highly reflects upon the theme Karen walker demonstrates on her black silhouette design and address the specific elements and elaborate a story of the themes of slavery, gender, class and identity. Karen walker certainly has an eye for detail in which is the very reason, she was an artist I was very much influenced by and  also  the view of side angled  facials that refers upon the race and character creates the demonstration  of differentiation and the acknowledgment of the theme . Gathering her artistic influence,  I am hoping to collect the idea of her design theme into my visual response for ‘ A Mercy’  and create an image or images that evolve the strong  perception of female oppression from the seventeen century through the depiction of race ,slavery and character.