
Tamia Alston-Ward
Cuzzo # 2, 2022
24K gold, steel, lead, silver, casein paint, egg tempera on prepared paper
9 x 12 inches
22.9 x 30.5 cms
22.9 x 30.5 cms
Copyright The Artist
Black children were collected in many forms as inanimate objects in the Jim Crow era and prior. When researching, I found there is a whole genre of figurines of Black...
Black children were collected in many forms as inanimate objects in the Jim Crow era and prior. When researching, I found there is a whole genre of figurines of Black babies, in particular, sitting on chamber pots. It's bizarre especially when one considers there are also images of white babies joyfully sitting on the potty. However, when this collectible is depicting Black babies, they are seen holding a watermelon. Also, I noticed the figurines are of a white baby, with straight hair and European features, but painted with a black face and red lips to demarcate the race. This figurine also has a coin of some kind coming out of the rear end, a chilling and strange emphasis on the commodification of Black children. This child made me think of the adultification of Black boys, in particular, contributing to Black boys being treated as adults, less innocent than white children, seen as more aggressive or older than they are, and even dying at the hands of police and others because of desires projected out of racism. The effects of this adultification are shown through the myriad of Black boys who are no longer with us from Emmett Till ( aged 14) to Tamir Rice (aged 12). The materials in this piece reflect the metals found in the guns and bullets used both to protect and harm these boys, with a tie to the Mammy as a mothering figure.