"Material Vanity" (3) - Triptych, 2024"Material Vanity" (3) - Triptych, 2024Material Vanity (3) - Triptych, 2024
Robin J North

Media: Platinum/Palladium over Gold Leaf Printed on Cotton Vellum
Framed Size: 15" X 31"
Print Sizes: 8: X 10"
Price: $1500
Threads of Time

Threads of Time explores the family histories of Americans of African descent, addressing forced migration, labor, land ownership, and modernity in rural, deep southern Texas. At its center is an 1845 deed recording the purchase of 100 acres of land for 100 pieces of gold by artist Robin North’s ancestor, Sam Brown, from his former enslaver. While suggesting agency, this document also reveals constrained freedoms. Through extensive research, North traces the journeys of Brown and his enslaver, illustrating how family histories remain linked to these contested origins.

North blends 19th-century photographic printing with contemporary methods, integrating archival sources to reconnect marginalized histories. Drawing inspiration from the Pictorialist movement approach emphasizing soft focus, painterly techniques, and artistic expression while countering its romanticized and often objectifying portrayals of marginalized communities, he reframes photography to reclaim and preserve historical narratives. Materiality is central to this handmaking process, as the tactile aspects of printmaking reinforce the physical presence of history and its enduring impact. The series Decolonized Aesthetics presents portraits emphasizing transnational and intercultural connections within the African diaspora, considering the effects of the Transatlantic slave trade and the resulting cultural fusion. By reclaiming and redefining a once-restrictive aesthetic tradition, North’s portraits include contemporary Americans of African descent, challenging their historical exclusion.

Self-portraits placed in landscapes tied to the deed are part of a larger body of work, A Way of Looking, which focuses on the act of observing and reframing historical contexts. These images showcase sites of forced migration and highlight how land, labor, and resources have shaped identities of African descent. Threads of Time also explores how cotton, as both a crop and commodity, ties past labor practices and economic patterns to present circumstances. Together, these elements provide a platform for revisiting these histories and their ongoing influence and relevance.

ARTIST STATEMENT:
I am a research-based conceptual artist exploring the historical narratives of the African Diaspora and Americans of African descent, focusing on the intersections of photography, history, and structural racism. I create art that tells stories of my family history and the lives of those who came before us in the rural Deep South of Texas, where I grew up. Using Black family archives, I amplify voices silenced in their lifetimes. I share narratives of resilience and trauma from African diasporic experiences often omitted from institutional archives and history books, illuminating how the past shapes our present.

My process incorporates photography, alternative photographic methods, collage, and mixed media. Combining 19th-century printing techniques with modern practices, I construct layered works that reflect cultural memory. While drawing from the Pictorialist movement’s emphasis on painterly techniques, I reject its romanticized portrayals of marginalized communities, using photography to reclaim and preserve historical narratives. This approach connects the past and present, exploring identity and heritage through visual storytelling.

Collaboration with my multigenerational kinship network informs my work. I listen to their stories and ensure their perspectives remain central, treating these narratives with care and respect. This counters the treatment of such histories as objects in museums or archives, keeping them tied to the communities they represent.

I invite viewers to question preconceived notions and examine how those views were formed. By blending historical and contemporary techniques, I create visual narratives that reclaim representation, resist dominant narratives, and foster dialogue about history, identity, and collective memory, challenging conventional ways of seeing.

Robin J. North

CLICK ON IMAGES TO VIEW FULL IMAGE AND DETAILS
"Decolonized Aesthetics - Member of the Court""Prince Cotton""Decolonized Aesthetics - Queen Cotton""Decolonized Aesthetics -Decolonized Aristocracy""Decolonized Aesthetics - North Royalty""Akoben’s Gaze, 2020""Ananse Ntentan’s Gaze, 2020""Akofena’s Gaze, 2020"Duafe’s Gaze, 2020"Aya’s Gaze, 2020""Nserewa’s Gaze, 2020"Precious Artifacts - 100 Acres for 100 Pieces of Gold""Material Vanity" (1) - Trytych, 2024"Material Vanity" (2) - Triptych, 2024"Material Vanity" (3) - Triptych, 2024"A Way of Looking - Corn Fields""A Way of Looking - Cotton Fields""A Way of Looking - Garcitas Cemetery""A Way of Looking - Housing for the Enslaved""A Way of Looking - Hudler School for Coloreds & Mt. Pisgah"