“The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born” Might Not Hold True For Much Longer 2013

Njideka Akunyili Crosby made this painting, its title “The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born” Might Not Hold True For Much Longer, using acrylic, charcoal, and transfers on paper. The way she layers images and patterns makes me think about collage, but it's also so painterly. Look how the figure is built from geometric shapes that shift and change, almost like a puzzle coming together, or maybe coming apart. The surface is so alive with these little details, drawing you in closer. I keep coming back to the way the personal and the political seem to collide in this work. The intimacy of the figure is placed against the backdrop of what looks like family photos, each telling a story. The images seem to be collaged together, creating a rich texture that speaks to memory and identity. It reminds me a bit of Romare Bearden's collages, how he also wove together fragments of life to create something new and powerful. It's a conversation, really, across time and place, about what it means to see and be seen.