don’t shoot (SOLD)

Charcoal

2018

The piece “don’t shoot” was birthed out of a state of disbelief. The story of Trayvon Martin reverberated around the world and his death incited the Black Lives Matter Movement. George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer in a gated community, claimed the young man in "a dark hoodie, a gray hoodie" was a "suspicious guy." That was what George Zimmerman told the 911 dispatcher before he shot and killed the 17-year-old Black boy. Trayvon Martin was a young boy who was murdered for being black.

The image I chose, depicts a person in a hoodie turning their neck – almost as if they’re turning around. The drawing depicts the moment before the fear is either validated or dismantled- in this case, dismantled. The viewer never gets to see the face or in this case the actual threat because there truly isn’t any. It is just a piece of clothing. The scale of the hoodie being life-size invites the viewer to place themselves into the drawing and experience it for themselves.