Savannah's Credit Card Protest 2004

Benny Andrews made this painting, Savannah's Credit Card Protest, with oil and collage on canvas. There is something so raw about the paint, like seeing the world in a single, immediate gesture. Look at the flatness of the figures; they remind me of cut-outs, especially those in the foreground, carrying their baskets. The paint is applied in thin layers, almost translucent in places, creating a surface that feels both fragile and resilient. This connects with the theme of protest, the people are present and demanding change. The muted colors, mostly browns and grays, make the scene feel like a memory. Yet, there's a tension between the flatness of the figures and the illusion of depth in the street, between the representational scene and the formal elements of the painting. Andrews' work, with its combination of painting and collage, always struck me as an ongoing conversation, a way of embracing multiple perspectives and histories at once. It's like Romare Bearden meets Philip Guston, where storytelling and social critique blend. It's never just one thing, and that’s what makes it so compelling.