Letter From Our Guest Editor
Op/Ed by Exaggerated Features Issue 2020.3 guest editor Clarence Meriweather.
 The article as it appears on page 4. | |
| Author | Clarence Meriweather |
|---|---|
| Genre | Article |
| Published | EF Issue 2020.3 |
| Pages | 2 |
| Website |
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Article Transcript
“To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.” —James Baldwin (1924-1987)
This is a strange time.
Deep political division, major social upheaval, a pandemic that has killed 200,000 Americans and counting. Toss in a generous helping of hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, derechos (I didn’t even know that was a thing) and you have some real Old Testament- level s**t. If 2020 were a TV show the producers would tell the writers, “There’s too much drama. It’s unrealistic. You have to spread it out over a couple of seasons.” Yet here we are, with the world’s worst reality show more than two-thirds over and building up steam to the season-ending cliffhanger: “Election Day.” I, for one, am horrified yet still glued to the screen to see what could possibly happen next. The problem is that we can’t cancel this show, and the consequences are going to have life-altering ramifications for years to come.
What does any of this have to do with being a caricature artist? Why should we care? I gave this a long and hard think when ISCA President Tom Faraci invited me to guest edit this issue. Don’t tell Tom, but I wasn’t even member of ISCA at the time (I am now. Thanks, Tom.) I am just a speed-gig artist who loves drawing and connecting with people. But right now, I’m just trying to stay healthy, take care of my family, keep my head down and pray that 2021 chills the f*** out.
But, the problem is that I’m a 6’ 3”, 330lb black man with a wide body and large hands—there’s only so far down I can keep my head. And when the topic of race is brought up, all eyes turn to me.
Regardless of who starts the discussion, sides are immediately drawn. Frustration, anger, rationalizations disguised as problem solving. Each side throws out cherry-picked discussion points, clichés, and endless rhetoric designed to drown out the opposition.
“Work hard and stop complaining and making excuses, you can be anything you want to be in the greatest country in the world. If you don’t like it, just leave!”
“This country is built on the backs of black and brown people for the sole purpose of sustaining the systems of white supremacy. That system is not built to benefit anyone that is not white.”
Maybe there was a time when there was only a sliver of daylight between genuine ideologies, but now it’s a gaping fracture-spewing rancor, hyperbole, and dangerous deeds— fueled to a large extent by the words and actions of Donald J. Trump, the 45th president of the United States.
In 2013, three black women— political organizers Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi— organized a political movement in response to the systematic oppression that allowed the killer of Trayvon Martin to get away with murder. Their organization’s name and rallying cry was three simple, yet powerful words:
Black Lives Matter.
No one argues that systemic racism and oppression isn’t an incredibly complex issue; one that can’t be fixed with catchy taglines. However, somewhere along the way, these necessary discussions on police reform, calls for accountability and demands for sensible restructuring were rebranded as “anti-police” and worse, “anti-American.”
How did we get here? Let’s consider one example, the 2017 “Unite the Right” march in Charlottesville. As protestors and counter protesters shouted at each other, a motorist plowed his car into a group of left-leaning counter- protestors, injuring more than 30 people and killing a 32-year-old activist named Heather Heyer.
Later President Trump would publicly assert that “there were very fine people, on both sides.” Perhaps the President wasn’t aware that there were as many as 17 different hate groups present that day—Klansmen, actual Nazis and more than a dozen other fringe groups.
Or perhaps he just didn’t care. Maybe Trump also wasn’t aware that the number of hate groups operating across America has risen to a record high—1,020—according to the Southern Poverty Law Center in February of 2019. Incidentally, that’s a 30% increase roughly coinciding with Trump’s presidential campaign and presidency following three consecutive years of decline under the Obama administration.
He definitely doesn’t care about that.
Fast forward to May 25, 2020 when George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was killed in Minneapolis while being detained for allegedly passing a counterfeit $20 bill. Eyewitness cell phone video shows a white police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds while the prone, handcuffed Floyd repeatedly cries, “I can’t breathe” and “Please.” I remember having a visceral reaction when I saw the video. Teeth clenched, chest tight, brow furled with anger and frustration. Floyd called for his momma while his life drained away under the knee of a police officer.
All for twenty bucks.
This wasn’t the first time I felt this way. It was the same watching videos of Sandra Bland. Eric Garner. Elijah McClain.
I remember my heart breaking as I watched the video of McClain repeating Floyd’s final words:
“I can’t breathe. I have my ID right here. My name is Elijah McClain. That’s my house. I was just going home. I’m an introvert ... I’m just different, that’s all…. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I can’t breathe.”
But heartbreak was replaced with frustration and rage when, despite clear evidence on video, the evening news predictably announced that the officers involved would face no criminal charges.
Even as I was working on finishing my final piece for this issue another video surfaced of a black man assaulted by police. This time it was Jacob Blake, who witnesses said had been trying to break up a fight, and who was then shot in the back seven times at point blank range as his three young sons watched.
What does it do to a kid to watch your father gunned down in the street by the very police who are supposed to protect you?
As of our press date, Blake is paralyzed from the waist down and it’s unknown if it will be permanent. He also suffered damage to his stomach, kidney, and liver, with the wounds requiring that most of his small intestines and colon had to be removed. If he ever walks again, it will be with a colostomy bag.
Black and brown people are tired.
We are tired of being tired.
Before the pandemic I was making a very good living doing speed caricatures for private parties, weddings, and college functions. I wear black at a lot of these formal functions and I am allowed to venture into social circles and functions I normally couldn’t attend. I can’t help but wonder what would happen if someone mistakes me for a criminal— or worse, calls the police just because I am black and look suspicious. What if the next video is of me being detained, choked, and arrested for being black in the wrong place at the wrong time?
For the first time in my life, I am considering getting training and carrying a firearm for when I am traveling to places like Indiana or Pennsylvania because I don’t want to be the next hashtag. Not without a fight.
I love doing caricature gigs. I get huge satisfaction from connecting with people and seeing their faces light up from my work. It’s magical.
But it’s not worth dying for.
When this pandemic finally ends, I’ll have to carefully consider if I want to go to those parties and weddings again. When clients start booking again, I know I will have to do a much more careful background check before accepting any gigs. Googling an address to find if the event location lies in Democratic or Republican territory. Intensive perusal of client social media pages in search of MAGA hat wearing photos, pro right-wing election memes or banners declaring “Blue Lives Matter.” For me, these symbols are a clear and present warning to people of color akin to the confederate flag, or the “Back- The-Blue” Punisher skull; and that warning is “Bigotry, prejudice, or violence is allowed and encouraged here. Proceed at your own risk.”
Right now, today…
I wouldn’t.
Black Lives Matter.
Despite all the evidence to the contrary, I continue to hold out hope that someday this won’t still be a point of conflict or deep division. It will just be understood. Then, we can all get back to drawing or sharing conversation over a drink or two.
Maybe someday.
Clarence can be contacted at CreativeDesignMind@protonmail.com
The 411 on Our Guest Editor Clarence D. Meriweather
What did you want to be when you grew up? Did you ever think you would be a caricature artist?
I knew I wanted to be an artist since I
was a 7 or 8. I remember drawing my
father sitting on the couch. It was a
simple study but I remember asking
my momma about shadows and how
I could draw better. She always made
sure I had pencils, crayons and sketchbooks.
I also spent a lot of time in the art
section of the library.
So how and when did caricatures creep into your life?
I think it crept into my life like any other
kid. I was in love with MAD Magazine
and the Usual Gang of Idiots. I used to
draw and copy the styles of Jack Davis,
John Severin, Mort Drucker, Sergio Aragones,
Al Jaffee and Don Martin. That
magazine was my classroom and they
were my teachers. I had no idea what
they were doing was exaggeration. I just
loved the art. I am a huge fan of Tom
Richmond too. He’s MAD too, just a few
generations down on the family tree.
If you could take a different path on the road to where you are now, what would it have been?
I loved football as a kid. I had a growth
spurt one summer (4 inches and 30 lbs)
and had to make the decision to either
go to art school or regular high school to
play high school football.
I auditioned for the Cleveland School of the Arts in the Summer of ´83 (I think) and I also tried out for East Tech High School Football. I think I woulda made the team but I told the coach I was going to be an artist. He immediately yelled “Get the hell off of my field!” I never looked back. Sometimes I wonder what could’ve been, but I know I made the correct decision.
And the road continues...where would you like to go?
Well, COVID kinda has everything on
hold. I am just trying to stay healthy
and out of the way. Perhaps education?
I enjoy teaching art/graphic design very
much. I would love to inspire and teach
the next generation of designers of
color. Give inner-city kids like I was an
opportunity to learn to express themselves
and communicate through design.
What is your caricature background?
I’m a Kaman’s Art Shoppes kid. I think
part of the rite of passage of being an
artist is working as a caricature artist
at an amusement park. You learn the
difference between art for art’s sake
and for commerce. I didn’t realize it
but those were some of the best times
of my life. I learned so much about
drawing, interacting with people, and
developing my aesthetic and style. I’ve
also made some lifetime friends and
colleagues.
In the last 5-7 years I have been doing speed sketching with my homeboy Adam Pate. He taught me how to take what I knew about sketching, simplify it and do it faster. What used to take me 3-5 min for a black and white now takes me 1.5 - 2 min when I’m really cooking. It sharpens your eye/hand skills. It’s also a laboratory to try different ways of sketching. The thing I think I miss most during this time of COVID is drawing at live gigs and interacting with the partygoers.
I am debating if I want to continue drawing gigs in the current political climate. I don’t believe it is safe for me traveling in certain areas right now. I hope it won’t always be like this. We’ll see. I was never really interested in drawing sketches electronically but that’s where everything seems to be heading so I’ll learn just to keep my chops. I never want to lose my chops.
What else would you like people to know about you before we wrap up?
Hmmm. I would like to learn how to draw
comic books or a graphic novel. I enjoy
telling stories and I have some ideas I
would like to bring to fruition.
I currently teach 2D Foundations at University of Akron. That’s fun. I like my students even though I am still finding my footing as an instructor.
I love science fiction. I believe Star Wars wasted a great character opportunity with John Boyega’s character Finn. (Still ticked about that.) I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and Who-vian. I love the 4th and 11th Doctor.
See Also
External Links
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