The Anansean World of Robert Colescott: An Interview with Umar Rashid by Phillip Edward Spradley - Los Angeles

 

Umar Rashid: Well, initially—and this was totally by chance—I first encountered Robert Colescott’s work while I was doing a show called What is the Color When Black is Burned? at the University of Arizona in Tucson. While I was there, working on the show and doing the rounds—meeting with chancellors, deans, shaking hands, kissing babies—I was introduced more directly to Colescott’s work. I already knew about George Washington Carver Crossing the Delaware and a few of his other iconic paintings, but that was pretty much it. I knew of him, but I wasn’t deeply familiar with his full practice. People would tell me, “You’d love Robert Colescott. His work reminds me of yours.” So, there was always this sense of affinity.