Cool Quarterback 1991

Curator: Ernie Barnes, in his 1991 acrylic on canvas titled "Cool Quarterback," offers us a swirling snapshot of gridiron intensity. Editor: My first thought? Wow, organized chaos! It feels less like a composed painting and more like I’m smack-dab in the middle of a scrimmage. Muscular bodies, ripped fabric... it’s all energy and grit! Curator: Barnes was renowned for his unique brand of social realism that he expressed through figuration. He explored athletic bodies with an expressionistic touch. This work underscores the physical and even violent realities often glorified within the culture of American football, pushing past the celebratory to explore a darker truth of pain and the brutal sacrifice made by football players. Editor: Sacrifice... That’s spot on! You can almost smell the sweat and feel the impact, right? Look at the way the players' bodies are almost grotesque. I love the sort of abstracted forms; he elongated the bodies and hands as if to convey this feeling of struggling towards something… I don’t know… glory or maybe just the next play. Curator: I think Barnes does that purposefully, subverting the often-hypermasculine associations connected to the sport. The tension in their reaching and grappling isn’t merely physical, there’s a deep, often unspoken vulnerability exposed in the desperation to succeed, mirroring anxieties within the context of societal competition. Editor: See, and that's what's brilliant! It works on so many levels! From a purely aesthetic perspective, the artist plays with this visual vortex to create movement but you have a completely valid reading there when considering intersectional narrative. But really the tension, the sweat and dirt, and yeah even the sometimes ugliness – I think that’s what makes it really honest, and genuinely powerful. Curator: The work challenges viewers, beckoning to examine how social structures put pressure particularly on working-class men of color in athletic profession, turning a critical eye on who benefits and the cost for those on the field. Editor: Well, this certainly gave me a lot to consider, and not just whether my team will win this weekend! Curator: Me too! It's a great reminder that the best art makes us question what we think we already know.