Clancy Tucker's Blog: 29 November 2020 - SKETCHES - 'BEING BLACK IN THE 21st CENTURY' by ARINZE STANLEY

SKETCHES

- 'BEING BLACK IN THE 21st CENTURY' -

by ARINZE STANLEY

G'day folks,

Inspired by his personal experiences growing up in Nigeria and the current state of society around him, Arinze is driven by creating drawings that trigger a degree of emotional connection between the viewers and his artworks. Using his works as a form of social and political activism, Arinze hopes to use his art to speak for those who can’t speak out for themselves.

"I always found drawing to be an amazing avenue to get away. Because of that, I found the pencil strokes to be incredibly mesmerizing. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always been the 'drawing guy' that used to be the best artist in class and you know, it stuck with me. Growing up and finally discovering the purpose and relevance of my gift and with everything going on in the world right now, it makes sense to me. All in all, drawing simply takes me away," said Arinze.

'I'm fascinated by how people make decisions based on religious and ethnic factors. For example, in Nigeria, a lot of different people in the same ethnic group are segregated by their different ideologies. So I wanted to ask people, “Are you making today’s decisions based on one of these ideologies? Are your decisions yours or are they guided by the larger society?” When you see hands in my drawings, it represents something meaningful to me. For example, in my “Mindless” series, hands represent the major contributors to division in today’s society, such as our social, political, tribal, or religious differences,' he said.

Now, let's check out his brilliant work ...