Flores

Samuel Levi Jones

2019

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A figure lays on his back through the center of the composition with arms overhead and eyes shut. A flower and several plants grow in the upper section. The left half of the sheet is a text page.
Untitled (Woman in Gray Dress, Waving), Mose Tolliver, paint on wood board
This painting on paper is immediately recognizable as the stylized figuration of Jacob Lawrence. A foreshortened worktable littered with tools at the bottom foreground of the composition pulls the viewer's eye right into the picture. Resting at the center of the table is the bottom edge of an arced length of red wood. It arcs dramatically to the center of the composition where its other end is held in the grip of the picture's sole figure, a black man in loose blue clothing. The figure's curved back and lowered head parallel the arced length of wood to create a graceful oval that anchors the center of the picture. Tall, open-backed work shelves behind the figure are filled with tools and materials; the shelves' frame also frames the overall composition; their open backs carry the eye back through the picture. Throughout the composition Lawrence's placement of red, indigo blue and yellow against subtler shades of gray creates a vibrant pattern and energy that echoes the activity of the figure.
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