Black Appalachia

Sarah Hoskins, American

Black Appalachia, 2017

The photographer Sarah Hoskins set out to show that the coal industry is diverse and not just exclusive to white workers. The photograph above is one artwork from her collection displaying the racial diversity of a coal community in Lynch, Kentucky. The scene takes place in a church as the deacon and others pray for Reverend Hampton. Many of the community members have a history in coal mining that has led to a shared sense of pride and strengthened bonds to support each other. Despite the decline of the coal industry in Lynch, these people continue to support each other in times of need and work towards a brighter future. Label by Jonathan Yoder

This is a photo by Sarah Hoskins from Katelyn Fossett’s article “Black Appalachia” showing members of the Mount Sinai Baptist Church in Lynch Kentucky praying for Reverend Hampton before his knee surgery. Through her photographs Hoskins documents Black communities in Appalachia that are left out of the common narrative, as Appalachia is usually characterized as “rural, mostly poor and mostly white” yet “coal miners have never been a racially homogenous group.” Fossett examines how the history of coal mining in the region created a large boom and bust leaving many towns empty as emigration rates rose. Lynch is one such town, with its population at a mere 800 people after the collapse of the coal economy. There is a juxtaposition between the pride people feel about their work in the mines, with the environmental issues that mountaintop removal mining has caused. Label by Savannah Singleton

Pipestone Quarry on the Coteau des Prairies

Morris Louis, American, 1912-1962

Pipestone Quarry on the Coteau des Prairies, 1954

George Catlin journeyed and painted Native American people throughout the western United States. He was the first to paint this sacred quarry where several different tribes made regular pilgrimages to create their pipes, which were carved for spiritual practices. The gravesite located behind the people gathering rock demonstrates the spiritual importance of the place and the longevity of the quarry as a site used over centuries. Though perhaps not intentionally, Catlin forces his audience to question the conventions of other mining practices that destroy landscapes and people when compared against this sustainable and sacred use of red stone for religious art. The indigenous people depicted are not enslaved labor like in the Caribbean, but instead using the stone as creative matter to maintain their own culture. Label by Katie Lee

The Land That Time Forgot

Kerry James Marshall, American, born 1955

The Land That Time Forgot, 1962

From the works that I have observed thus far, I noticed that the bold use of color and scale are techniques that can invigorate an artwork’s meaning, surfacing strong emotions of intimidation, fear, and pain and making the question of systematic oppression unavoidable. For example, Marshall’s The Land that Time Forgot zeroes in on emphatic themes of imperialism, industry, and ecological devastation. I find that Marshall’s work is able to tug on both ends of the ecological spectrum, as he shows both biological and psychological environmental torment in his painting. A South African springbok (country’s national symbol) in the center is pierced with arrows, and lies dying surrounded by unmistakable emblems of European occupation: Christian crucifixes, the portrait of the Dutch founder of Cape Town, and allusions to the mining ventures that fueled Apartheid (Braddock & Kusserow 371). The emblems seem haphazardly thrown up on the canvas, as if to suggest that it was graffitied by the European oppressors themselves. Label by Tara Vasanth

The Earth is not for Sale

Ricardo Levins Morales, American, born 1967

The Earth is not for Sale, 2015

Ricardo Levins Morales is an artist and an organizer based in Minneapolis. He uses his art as a form of protest and collective healing from injuries and ongoing reality of oppression. He was born into the anti-colonial movement in his native Puerto Rico. Ricardo's work is widely used by grassroots movements, organizations and communities. Statement from the artist’s website:

"The fossil fuel industry possesses an insatiable appetite. First Nations and native activists stand on the front line of defense against their assault on Mother Earth. This poster depicts an oil executive reaching out his hand in a demand. The native elders say no – you cannot take what belongs to everyone.”

Label by Isabel Schreur