01
"History and Hope"
Celebrating the Civil Rights Movement c. 2013
“What I see today is a lot different. The younger generation doesn’t have the same experience of the two Americas that I saw growing up. I see a hope there. Because of what we went through and the people who died before us, younger people today can dream higher. They don’t have to stand up and fight for a cause. They can be the progress.” – Michael Brantley, Visual Artist
02
"A Benediction from the Rubble"
Matthew Thompson c. 2024
Michael Brantley, a Kansas City multi-disciplinary artist, honors Black figures from music, entertainment, and politics in his oil paintings. But instead of paying static homage to their achievements, he depicts them with sensitivity and a glimmer of sadness that will make viewers linger. One of his most striking pieces, “Figures of Speech,” reveals a symbolic interpretation of Barack Obama, Malcolm X, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Depicted almost entirely in grayscale, the group portrait only betrays color in the small lapel pins each man is wearing — an American flag, an Islamic Crescent Moon, and a Christian cross. All three individuals appear to be deeply introspective, even brooding, over the weight of the social and political burdens they carry. The work succeeds as a dignified tribute to its subjects while also contemplating the confluence of personal and group identity.
03
"A Proliferation of Issue Art"
Alice Thorson c. 2018
“The overall theme of the painting is in the spirit of Sankofa, a Ghanaian symbol, made in the form of a bird looking over its shoulder,” Brantley said in a written statement. “(The bird is) transplanting a seed for securing a better future, from what had been retrieved from the past.” Look closely and one can see slave ships reflected in the subject’s eyes. He’s “looking back on a time when the transatlantic slave trade was possible,” Brantley explained. “He is taking the chains of bondage and handing them back while declaring himself the man he was created to be before his capture and subsequent dehumanization.”
04
"Cultural Legacy What's Going On?"
James Martin c. 2018
In Michael Brantley’s oil on canvas painting “I AM,” an African American man holds chains that resemble slave shackles, while above him, a headdress-like element is composed of small images from the 1968 Memphis sanitation strike showing men holding signs that read “I am a Man.” Three dates appear among the chain links. Two are fully legible: 1522, the date of a major slave rebellion on the island of Hispaniola (the island made up of Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and 1619, the date that enslaved Africans were first brought to Jamestown. The third date is illegible except for the first two digits, 20. The work brings to mind the resurgence of slavery in our time, such as sexual slavery resulting from war (as elucidated by recent Nobel Peace Prize laureates Dr. Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad). In addition, in one of the most pointed adjacencies in the exhibition, the placement of Michael Toombs’ large work, “Usury,” next to Brantley’s painting suggests the servitude that many face as a result of overwhelming debt.
05
Zhou B Art Center
KCUR (NPR)
INTERVIEW
Savannah Hawley-Bates c. 2024
The Zhou brothers first came to Kansas City in 2017 on an invitation from Allan Gray, an equity partner with the center and the former chairman of the Missouri Arts Council and Arts KC. Gray took the pair to various art scenes around the city, including 18th and Vine, where the Attucks school caught their attention. “I was surprised that they would bring it to the Midwest because we're usually a flyover state and that's why a lot of us don't get the recognition we deserve,” Brantley says. “I think that this facility will bring a more international appeal.” Art Director Izzy Vivas says the center came together with “a lot of love” from a relatively small team. She hopes it becomes a new hub for visual and performing arts. “There's art all over Kansas City — it's not just in one neighborhood, it's everywhere,” Vivas says. “Having this space in the 18th and Vine District that has historically been known for so much creativity, I think we'll expand the geography of what people think when they think where art is.”
06
"Testimony AAAC, A Much Needed Gift"
Dwight Smith c. 2021
My favorites from the show include “A Seat at the Table” by Michael Brantley, a riveting take on generational servitude, but you can tell by the eyes of the subjects that the dish being served might not be the one you were expecting. The stark black background has a foundational feel that says we belong. Next up is “Block and Delete” by Arie Dee Monroe, a refreshing look at Black “Pop Art.” In her piece, the artist takes you on a trip into the world of unsolicited advances so many women face online. The piece allows for the viewer to see through a series of screen shots how the subject engages with online harassment. Don’t let the lighthearted visuals fool you; this piece speaks volumes on the expanded spaces where disrespect and abuse occur at alarming rates. And finally, “Here to Stay” by Ramona Elizabeth Davis is a wonderful look at the entire diaspora. With its stained-glass church feel, this piece can tell you so much if you pay attention, from our origins, our travels, our struggles and the “I AM’s” which bring us full circle.
