00:12

As a conceptual artist, I'm constantly looking for creative ways to spark challenging conversations. I do this though painting, sculpture, video and performance. But regardless of the format, two of my favorite materials are history and dialogue.

00:27

In 2007, I created "Lotus," a seven-and-a-half-foot diameter, 600-pound glass depiction of a lotus blossom. In Buddhism, the lotus is a symbol for transcendence and for purity of mind and spirit. But a closer look at this lotus reveals each petal to be the cross-section of a slave ship. This iconic diagram was taken from a British slaving manual and later used by abolitionists to show the atrocities of slavery. In America, we don't like to talk about slavery, nor do we look at it as a global industry. But by using this Buddhist symbol, I hope to universalize and transcend the history and trauma of black America and encourage discussions about our shared past.

01:12

To create "Lotus," we carved over 6,000 figures. And this later led to a commission by the City of New York to create a 28-foot version in steel as a permanent installation at the Eagle Academy for Young Men, a school for black and latino students, the two groups most affected by this history. The same two groups are very affected by a more recent phenomenon, but let me digress.

01:35

I've been collecting wooden African figures from tourist shops and flea markets around the world. The authenticity and origin of them is completely debatable, but people believe these to be imbued with power, or even magic. Only recently have I figured out how to use this in my own work.

02:05

Since 2012, the world has witnessed the killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice and literally countless other unarmed black citizens at the hands of the police, who frequently walk away with no punishment at all. In consideration of these victims and the several times that even I, a law-abiding, Ivy League professor, have been targeted and harassed at gunpoint by the police. I created this body of work simply entitled "BAM."

02:36

It was important to erase the identity of each of these figures, to make them all look the same and easier to disregard. To do this, I dip them in a thick, brown wax before taking them to a shooting range where I re-sculpted them using bullets. And it was fun, playing with big guns and high-speed video cameras. But my reverence for these figures kept me from actually pulling the trigger, somehow feeling as if I would be shooting myself. Finally, my cameraman, Raul, fired the shots. I then took the fragments of these and created molds, and cast them first in wax, and finally in bronze like the image you see here, which bears the marks of its violent creation like battle wounds or scars.

03:20

When I showed this work recently in Miami, a woman told me she felt every gun shot to her soul. But she also felt that these artworks memorialized the victims of these killings as well as other victims of racial violence throughout US history.

03:33

But "Lotus" and "BAM" are larger than just US history. While showing in Berlin last year, a philosophy student asked me what prompted these recent killings. I showed him a photo of a lynching postcard from the early 1900s and reminded him that these killings have been going on for over 500 years. But it's only through questions like his and more thoughtful dialogue about history and race can we evolve as individuals and society.

03:59

I hope my artwork creates a safe space for this type of honest exchange and an opportunity for people to engage one another in real and necessary conversation.

04:10

Thank you.00:12

作为一位概念派艺术家， 我经常寻求创新的方式 通过绘画、雕塑、视频和表演 去启发大家思考 一些有挑战性的话题。 但是抛开形式不谈， 我最喜欢的材料是历史和对话。

00:27

在2007年，我创造了“莲花”， 一个直径约2.3米 重达600磅的 莲花花瓣玻璃刻绘作品。 在佛教中，莲花是超然的象征 是纯净的意念和精神的象征。 但是仔细看这个莲花， 每一个花瓣都是 贩卖奴隶的船只的横截面。 我所临摹的图像来自于 英国的奴役手册， 它后来被废奴主义者 用来展示奴隶制的残忍。 在美国我们不愿意 讨论奴隶制， 我们也不把奴隶制 当成全球的产业。 用这个佛学象征 我希望可以让大家 意识到非裔美国人的历史， 治愈他们的的创伤， 并且鼓励有关我们共同的过去的讨论。

01:12

为了创作“莲花” 我们雕刻了6000多个人物。 之后美国纽约议会 在青年鹰学院 制造了一个直径8.5米的钢铁版本。 青年鹰学院是一所 为非裔和拉丁裔学生服务的学校。 这两类人是受历史影响最大的， 同样是他们近来 又到了巨大的影响。 我后面会继续讲这个话题。

01:35

我一直在全球的 纪念品商店和跳蚤市场 收集木质非洲人物雕塑。 他们的来源和真实性 是很值得怀疑的， 但是人们相信雕塑里蕴含能量 甚至魔法。 直到最近我才找到 它们用在我的作品中的办法。

02:05

2012年开始 世界见证了塔拉万•马丁、 迈克尔•布朗、埃里克•加纳 桑德拉•布兰德、塔米尔•莱斯 等一系列手无寸铁的 非裔公民 被警察射杀， 并且警察经常无罪开释。 想到这些受害者 和很多次我自己的经历， 作为一位守法的春藤盟校的教授 我也曾经被警察袭击 被枪口直接指着。 想到这些 我创作了这个艺术 并且简单的命名为“嘣”。

02:36

为了让他们看起来一样 并且容易被忽视 抹去这些雕塑的身份 是非常重要的。 我先把它们放在 浓稠的棕色液体蜡之中， 然后带到了射击场 在那里我用子弹进行重新雕塑。 使用大型枪支 配合高速摄影机是非常有趣的。 但是我对于这些雕塑的尊敬 让我无法扣动扳机 突然我感觉我好像在 对我自己射击。 最后我的摄像师，劳尔 替我开了枪。 我取回打碎的雕塑 并制造模具， 在外表裹上一层蜡， 最后镀上铜色 就像你们看到的这样。 每一个雕塑都有着 暴力制造的印记 就像战场上的伤痕。

03:20

当我最近在迈阿密展出我的作品时， 一位女性告诉我她感到 每一枪都打在她的灵魂上。 同时她觉得这些艺术品 纪念了这些死去的受害者 也纪念了整个美国历史上 因为种族犯罪而牺牲的所有人

03:33

但是“莲花”和“嘣”的意义 已经超越了美国历史。 去年在柏林展出时， 一位哲学学生问我 是什么引发了最近的杀戮。 我向他展示了一张20世纪早期 的一张画着处以私刑 的明信片。 我告诉他这些杀戮已经持续了超过500年历史。 但是只有通过像他所问的问题 和对于历史和种族的更多深刻的对话 我们个人和社会才会进化。

03:59

我希望我的艺术品 可以为这样坦诚的交流 提供一个安全的环境 也为那些投身于 真实且必要的对话之中的人 提供一个机会。

04:10

谢谢。