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Sculpture
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Celebrating Freedom The Art of Willie Birch
David S. Rubin, Leslie King Hammond, J.B. Borders
The significance of the Willie Birch book and exhibition, in light of the events following the hurricane, is hard to overestimate. His art documents a community and culture that were devastated
For the past ten years, Birch has been documenting the African American culture of his native New Orleans in large-scale sculpture and drawings that emphasize body language, dress codes, and everyday rituals. His guileless polychrome sculptures evoke both social history and emotion. His use of talismans give the viewer a window to another time, be it through old construction nails symbolizing power and strength to a small West African paper maché stool that stands apart as a symbol of nobility. Dedicated to the children of New Orleans, this is the first publication to examine Birch’s career whose re-imagining of African and Southern folk art inspires thought provoking discussions as well as contemporary sculpture and design. It includes two essays and an interview with the artist, as well as color reproductions of key works dating from 1968-2004. David S. Rubin is the Curator of Visual Arts, Contemporary Art Center, New Orleans, Louisiana. He is an author of Baby-Boom Daydreams, and The Art of Douglas Bourgeois. Leslie King Hammond, Ph.D., is the Dean of Graduate Studies at the Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, Maryland. J.B. Borders is a social commentator, and the founding editor of the New Orleans Tribune as well as the executive director of the Louisiana Division of the Arts.
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