Triflin' - taking up space
Quotes and Black Art | Thursdaysº
Quotes and Black Art
Your Curated Art Museum
“Come for the art, stay for the quotes.”
“And fantasy it was, for we were not strong, only aggressive, we were not free, merely licensed; we were not compassionate, we were polite; not good, but well behaved. We courted death in order to call ourselves brave, and hid like thieves from life.” — Toni Morrison, The Bluest Eye, 1970
A Snippet:
Did you know that Toni Morrison, born and raised in Ohio, was a Black Catholic and that her pen name “Toni” wasn’t her birth name (it was Chloe)?
Learn more . . .
Quotes and Black Art
Thursday, July 9, 2026 (week 28)
The dog days of summer.
97. “Portrait of Mnonja” (2010) by Mickalene Thomas
New York-based artist Mickalene Thomas (b. 1971)—best known for her elaborate paintings composed of rhinestones, acrylic, and enamel—on living life unapologetically:
“She is owning and claiming her space, which is very exciting.”
- Mickalene Thomas
98. “The Contribution of the Negro to Democracy in America” (1943) by Charles White
Chicago, Illinois, artist Charles White (1918 - 1979)—who utilized his skills as a draftsman, printmaker, and painter, in order to create powerful images of African Americans, which White described as “images of dignity”—on his composition that includes a long list of American history titans, such as: Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Nat Turner, Frederick Douglass, Marian Anderson, Crispus Attucks, Denmark Vesey, Booker T. Washington, George Washington Carver, and Paul Robeson:
“I started with the American Revolution, depicting Crispus Attucks as the first man to die in the Revolution, came on through using individuals like Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, George Carver, Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, and Marian Anderson. The object was to take the contributions both through physical revolt of fighting for the abolition of slavery, and also the contributions that had been made in the sciences as well as the arts, as well as politics.”
- Charles White
99. “Aunt Eira Mae” (1998) by Larry D. Alexander
Dermott, Arkansas-born Larry D. Alexander (b. 1953)—an artist, Christian author, and catechist, best known for his elaborate, colorful, and black & white (“pen and ink”) drawings—on inspiration and speaking things into existence:
“I was with a group of kids and we said that if there was ever a president from Arkansas, we’d do a portrait of him. It was just a joke at the time, and years later, I had forgotten about it. But one day, when Clinton was doing well in the presidential race and it looked like he was going to win, the memory just popped back in my mind. It was eerie, but inspirations are like that.”
- Larry D. Alexander
The Silver Lining?
You claim physical space by using body language. You claim emotional space by setting boundaries. But you're triflin'when you, "Wander from house to house, and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which you ought not."
Cancer Birthdays!
(June 21 - July 22)
July 5 - Shohei Ohtani
July 6 - Kevin Hart
July 6 - 50 Cent
July 6 - Frida Kahlo
July 7 - Leesa Cross-Smith
July 8 - Jaden Smith
July 9 - Richard Roundtree (today!)
July 10 - Marcel Proust
July 11 - Lil Kim
(Breathe In . . . Breathe Out)
Triflin’ - taking up space
Quotes and Black Art - A Newsletter
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