


Wadsworth Jarrell
Lady & Prez #2, 1989
acrylic on paper
30 x 22 in (76.2 x 55.9 cm)
Copyright The Artist
Further images
Lady & Prez#2, is a colorful tribute to jazz legends Billie Holiday and Lester Young (known fondly as the 'President' or 'Prez.') Painted in 1989, Jarrel places these idols at...
Lady & Prez#2, is a colorful tribute to jazz legends Billie Holiday and Lester Young (known fondly as the "President" or "Prez.") Painted in 1989, Jarrel places these idols at the center of the painting, on stage where they belong and belting out their soulful music. The painting is a highly stylized interpretation of the jazz musicians, influenced by drawings of Wadsworth’s three children, Wadsworth, Jr. Jennifer and Roslyn when they were between ages 2-10. In Lady & Prez #2 the artist was not attempting to capture a likeness, but rather explore the personality of the musicians; Billie with the white Gardenia in her hair and stage mannerism, and Lester with the Tenor Sax and the famous Pork-Pie hat.
Celebrating black musical genius, Jarrell also combines elements of traditional African geometric shapes. For example, the faces of "Lady" and "Prez" are rendered in an abstract fashion, alluding to the facial planes of the Baluba or Basonge masks of Central Africa. Additionally, the zigzags and undulating designs suggest the complex harmonies and syncopated rhythms of the music.
Through his series on Jazz, Jarrell embraces his role as an oral historian for the African American Community, chronicling the rhythmic dynamism of Black culture and social life.
Celebrating black musical genius, Jarrell also combines elements of traditional African geometric shapes. For example, the faces of "Lady" and "Prez" are rendered in an abstract fashion, alluding to the facial planes of the Baluba or Basonge masks of Central Africa. Additionally, the zigzags and undulating designs suggest the complex harmonies and syncopated rhythms of the music.
Through his series on Jazz, Jarrell embraces his role as an oral historian for the African American Community, chronicling the rhythmic dynamism of Black culture and social life.
Provenance
Collection of the ArtistExhibitions
New Work, Fay Gold Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia, 1989.Group Exhibition, McIntosh Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia, 1991.
Wadsworth Jarrell Solo, Hammonds House Museum, Atlanta, Georgia, 1992
Six Anniversary Show, Parish Gallery, Washington, DC, 2006.
Come Sunday Punch, solo at Kavi Gupta Gallery, Chicago, 2019.
Skoto Gallery, New York, Jae and Wadsworth Jarrell: Master Works-Old and New, 2019.
Join our mailing list
* denotes required fields
We will process the personal data you have supplied in accordance with our privacy policy (available on request). You can unsubscribe or change your preferences at any time by clicking the link in our emails.