race | violence | gender | sexuality | identity | storytelling
Kara Walker is an artist who became famous for her cut-out silhouettes portraying narratives of historical value with indications of issues with race, gender, and sexuality. Her work gives viewers a glimpse at the past through the lens of contemporary racial and gender stereotypes. Her first silhouette piece was inspired by the novel "Gone with the Wind." Her use of silhouette deepens her overall concept as she describes silhouettes as "evasive yet confrontational" all at the same time. Kara Walker was a student and just twenty-four years old when she gained her success as an artist. The Melodrama of "Gone with the Wind" was her break out piece and was on display in New York City. This is where people became interested and questioned her work. People wanted to know more and warned her of the problems with becoming famous at such a young age. She decided to take the opportunities as they were presented to her even though she did not feel 100% ready to do so at the time. She started teaching at Columbia where she was the same age as many of the graduate students at the time and felt awkward because of this. At this point in her life she felt that any confidence that she had was gone after moving to the city. She did not feel that she necessarily was qualified to be doing what she was doing.
Kara Walker has just recently accepted and come to terms with what she is doing. She has come to the conclusion that she has been teaching all these years, she must know something about what she is doing. I can relate to this on a much smaller level. When I make a project, family members and friends will glorify me and my art and ask me how I did it. I don't always have a clear answer for them and I do not see what I do as great as they always do and I think this is kind of what Kara Walker felt in her young, yet successful life. This also just goes to show that we as the artist, don't always see what other people see when looking at our work. In a way, we are our harshest critics. Kara Walker states "you can declare yourself an artist and then figure out how to be an artist" (Art 21, 2014). By this she means that being an artist is determined on a very personal basis and is not something that you need to fulfill with a certain path or degree requirement like what you would need to be a nurse or doctor. I respect Kara Walker's outlook on being an artist and her "make it happen" attitude. We see that Kara Walker is supportive of her students but also is realistic in the fact that you have to do what you have to in order for what you want to happen.
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Kara Walker's Work |
Kara Walker in the ClassroomThe idea of silhouette is intriguing. Silhouette's are confrontational but at the same time non-descript. Kara Walker is able to tell elaborate stories using the beautiful simplicity and silhouette. For a potential lesson idea, students could create their very own narrative using silhouette out of large paper. The idea of having the silhouettes be life-size brings viewers into the narrative so keeping that scale for this project would be effective. The narratives that students would create could all be discussing moments in the student's life that they have found to be challenging as Kara Walker challenges stereotypes in her work. The students' narrative silhouettes could all be hung in the hallways on display as a collaboration and for the school to see.
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Questions to Consider:
Why does Kara Walker use silhouette?
How can one tell a story using silhouette?
How can one challenge a stereotype?
What kinds of challenges do you face in your life?
How can you face these challenges? How can you visually depict this? Can silhouette help you achieve this?
How can one tell a story using silhouette?
How can one challenge a stereotype?
What kinds of challenges do you face in your life?
How can you face these challenges? How can you visually depict this? Can silhouette help you achieve this?