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This painting has been in my mental pipeline for quite a while. I’ve been thinking about it because of the metaphor regarding the concept of “white” filtering into so much of what art is about. This is especially true about stereotypic pastels as well, which are so often misconstrued with their own double meaning as pastel (ie mixed with white.) When I recently read Small Great Things (read my review here), I was thinking about this pervasive issue all the more, and I knew it was time to paint this painting.

It was an interesting compositional challenge to think about. Since “people of color” is a preferred reference, I opted for a range of color, from muted to more intense, to represent diversity instead of choosing to merely depict a range of skin tone. Here is the result. It is an ongoing process of overcoming, not a vision of it fully accomplished, but it is important to be doing it.

You can see the entire painting above and details beneath. The original painting is for sale. Contact me if interested.  Prints and merchandise of it can be purchased in my online store here.

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