Angels of Colour
Somewhere, floating on the internet is a video of Eartha Kitt in an interview. She begins with a head tilt and facing the camera with a meaningful, direct, stare and she simply states, “When I walk into a church, I only see paintings of white angels. Why?” Following this, she looks above and with a voice of gravelled treacle she sings “Painter- painting in our love. Pictures of only white angels. Painter, painting in our time, in shadows of yesterday”. The song explores saints, angels, and Christianity itself being whitewashed by shadows of whiteness, a process that has been and continues to occur in almost every pillar of life. My mixed media piece, titled ‘Angels of Colour’ was a product of inspiration birthed after watching this interview which ends with a very important question pertaining to why blankets of whiteness seem to drape over every institution – even those such as religion.
‘Angels of Colour’ is a collation of different sources of media and includes a collection of photographs I took in Accra; Ghana whilst on lockdown. The superfluous amount of ‘free’ time I had meant that engaging in activities like falling down YouTube holes, reading and simply walking became activities I grew to look forward to. Whilst going on walks past everything from palm trees, to coconut vendors, to goats, I’d take film photographs of everything that spoke to me. During one of my walks, I came across a souvenir shop which had posters of Black angels plastered on the sides of its walls – these paintings can be seen in the backdrop of the mixed media piece. The two main angels touching fingers at the top of this piece are by Harmonia Rosales, an artist who works to reinterpret Renaissance works by replacing Black heroines as the subject of paintings. I still only see paintings of white Angels when I walk into churches, but the act of artists reclaiming their identity in spaces they do not see themselves is an act of power.
By Makella A. (@ma.kevelli)
(they/them/she/her)
Edited by Halima Jibril (@h.alimaa)