99% NO.80 2013

Curator: This is Sedrick Huckaby’s piece, "99% NO.80," a study in ink wash. Editor: The immediacy of the lines conveys a sort of vulnerability. The sketch feels exposed, raw. Curator: Indeed. Huckaby often works with portraits to probe identity. Here, we see the boy, rendered simply, almost unfinished. The "99%" hints at potential, but also maybe at incompleteness. Editor: Look at the contrasting textures created by the ink wash and the frantic, scribbled lines. It's a formal device mirroring that tension between potential and lack. Curator: I agree. There's a connection to cultural memory, the unfinished stories, the unfulfilled promises. The boy becomes an emblem of a community's aspirations. Editor: It’s interesting to consider how the composition draws you to the face first, then lets your eye wander, as if the lines want to show you more but can’t quite resolve. Curator: It's a powerful convergence of symbol and form. Editor: Leaving us to fill in the missing one percent.