{"id":245195,"date":"2025-05-17T12:34:20","date_gmt":"2025-05-17T12:34:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/entertainment\/art\/connecting-his-african-ancestry-to-21st-century-america\/"},"modified":"2025-05-17T12:34:20","modified_gmt":"2025-05-17T12:34:20","slug":"connecting-his-african-ancestry-to-21st-century-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=245195","title":{"rendered":"connecting his African ancestry to 21st century America\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"


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(L) Monolithic Reasons Why I\u2019m African: The Great Benin Walls of The Inner (Ya High Technology II), 2021. (R) Monolithic Reasons Why I\u2019m African: Portal 4 Kings and Queens, 2021.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

New York City-based, abstract artist Garry Grant<\/a> opens his second\u00a0solo exhibition with Lola Shepard titled OUR HISTORY IS OUR FUTURE, an online solo exhibition featuring select works\u00a0 on paper, wood panels, and canvas. The exhibition will be viewable online on LolaShepard.com<\/a> from March 11 \u2013 April 23, 2022.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Grant, originally from Detroit is an artist on the rise. He\u2019s represented by UNREPD Gallery in Los Angeles, a new gallery space focusing on works by African American Artists of Color. He has several exhibitions in New York City, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Detroit, Dallas, and Atlanta. In 2021, Grant was nominated for the 34th Annual McNeese National Works on Paper <\/em>exhibition at McNeese State\u00a0University, LA.<\/p>\n

Inspired by Morocco<\/strong><\/p>\n

For this recent body of work, Grant took his inspiration from a trip he made to Marrakesh and Essaouira, Morocco, in\u00a02015. The two cities\u2019 histories, their ancient Medinas, and their ornate design aesthetics had a profound impact on\u00a0 his art-making. In replicating the geometric motifs and vegetal patterns found throughout the cities\u2019 architecture, the\u00a0 artist turned to the medium of handmade paper as the vehicle of choice to construct the elaborate works of art.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Pharaonic Future Monuments II, 2020<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In creating the complex works, Grant draws out the design on paper first. He then builds the piece, layering paper\u00a0onto paper, allowing the positive and negative spaces to be part of the artwork. Incorporating scribing lines and\u00a0 scoring techniques, the artist then applies shellac and lush, bold colors in acrylic paint, often integrating gold, silver,\u00a0 and copper leaf to create depth and vibrancy. The resulting color-drenched motifs reference the ornate designs of\u00a0 the doorways, archways, monuments, and walls of Moroccan medinas.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The exhibition includes works from several ongoing series<\/strong><\/p>\n

For example, the Marrakesh Entrance <\/em>series showcases\u00a0the elegant arched doorways of Marrakesh in vivid color. The intricate, lattice doorways in The Gateway to Eternal\u00a0 Souls <\/em>series refer to the themes of life and death and pay homage to the passing away of loved ones during the\u00a0 pandemic.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Pharaonic\u00a0Future Monuments IX, 2021<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Constructed out of paper and thin wood slats, the interlacing, mosaic-like pattern in the Fortalice Grid <\/em>series portrays\u00a0 an aerial perspective of the bustling cities of Morocco. The large-scale panoramic triptych painting Fortifications\u00a0 A.V.B.M. (Aerial View Blue Midnight)<\/em>, beautifully rendered in aerial view, depicts Marrakesh at night. Appearing\u00a0 monochromatic from a distance, Grant applies acrylic paint in muted colors of black, brown, and blue to the canvas\u00a0 by hand, manipulating the pigments until attenuated forms cover the surface. In adding pressure to the canvas, a\u00a0 cracked-pattern effect is revealed, providing a rich texture to the composition.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Pharaonic Future Monuments IV, 2020<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The somber, contemplative series Black Egyptian Relic <\/em>features ancient African funeral tablets with written scripture,\u00a0 and The Black Mausoleum <\/em>series depicts funeral monuments. In this series, Grant embeds woodcut pieces, in a variety\u00a0 of shapes, on to the paper, creating a highly tactile surface.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In his newest series, The Monolithic Series<\/em>, Grant blurs the boundaries between sculpture and painting. Applying cut\u00a0 wood pieces on wood panels to create dimensionality, the works in this series serve as a tribute to the architectural\u00a0 grandeur of ancient African civilizations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Distinctly contemporary and dynamic to behold, Garry Grant\u2019s oeuvre is a testament to his deep connection with his\u00a0 African ancestry and the lived experience of a Black man in twenty-first-century America.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For more information<\/p>\n

LolaShepard.com<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(L) Monolithic Reasons Why I\u2019m African: The Great Benin Walls of The Inner (Ya High Technology II), 2021. (R) Monolithic Reasons Why I\u2019m African: Portal 4 Kings and Queens, 2021. New York City-based, abstract artist Garry Grant opens his second\u00a0solo exhibition with Lola Shepard titled OUR HISTORY IS OUR FUTURE, an online solo exhibition featuring […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":245196,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[100],"tags":[1511,9229,2708,13911,6103,33241],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-245195","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art","tag-21st","tag-african","tag-america","tag-ancestry","tag-century","tag-connecting"],"yoast_head":"\nconnecting his African ancestry to 21st century America\u00a0 - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=245195\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"connecting his African ancestry to 21st century America\u00a0 - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"(L) Monolithic Reasons Why I\u2019m African: The Great Benin Walls of The Inner (Ya High Technology II), 2021. 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