Darkytown Rebellion Analysis

The two artworks that are going to be talked about within this paper are Epoch created by Whitfield Lovell and Darkytown Rebellion by Kara Walker both done in 2001. Both of these artists portray images of the same culture, however they create their art and set it up in a way that makes the message different from one another.
Whitfield Lovell is a contemporary African-American artist that uses his artwork to create images of other African-American individuals “from between the Emancipation Proclamation and the Civil Rights Movement.”1 He uses vintage photography to help recreate the images of the individuals he chooses to draw.1 He creates his artwork with the mediums of oil stick, pencils, or charcoal. He uses these mediums both on paper or old wood and sometimes even directly on the wall itself. Most of his more recent work combines the mediums with the use of found objects and the way he does this in is called using the index. By using the index he is letting the material or object he uses to suggest something that is older or different. This allows some viewers to create personal reminiscences as well as create a connection that a viewer could use to connect themselves to their ancestors. He also uses his work to show in a collective way the past of America with the view from African-Americans.1
Lovell’s Epoch uses the medium
The scene that Walker has decided to show within this piece is that of individuals rebelling. This artwork takes up a corner space of a gallery with the height of the piece being around fourteen feet and the length around thirty-seven feet. It contains around fifteen characters placed along a single plane; these characters are demonstrating a scene that looks like one might associate with a nightmare. The use of an overhead projector within this work is something that is used to include the viewers and place them in the art