Blacks have been out of antebellum slavery for 154 years. However, through it all we were able to persevere and move forward by taking our tradition with us and applying them to our situations.
This allow us to overcome victimization, while slavery is one aspect of the black American experience it is not the only aspect of our experience. It is not even the greatest aspect of our experience.
The greatest aspects of our experience as enslaved people are applying our genius to the situation to help us overcome our victimization, while standing on the shoulders of our ancestors. I created this large scale piece as a statement to say, be proud of who you are.
In spite of what you go through it is important to continue to rise about all obstacles that might get in your way.
Every human is the creator's masterpiece, we are all walking museums.
The Sankofa bird signifies that we must continue to move forward as we remember our past. And at the same time we plant a seed for the future generations that after us.
Sankofa is an African work from the Akan Tribe in Ghana. The word is derived from the words: SAN: (return) KO: (go) FA: (look, seek, and take).
About the Artist
Antwoine Washington is a Cleveland-based artist and designer. He specialize in graphite portraits, paintings, mixed media, and graphic design. Antwoine received his bachelor of fine arts from Southern University A&M college in 2007.
LAND Studio is responsible for curating the art wall exhibits, which are made possible by a generous grant from the Char and Chuck Fowler Family Foundation.