I have to say that I’m feeling very conflicted by my title and subject of this drawing. I love naive art and how salt-of-the-earth people are portrayed in it. However, I realize the subjects are often victims of colonization and racial oppression. I see so much beauty in natural faces and raw expressions, but I wonder if I have any right to render my vision of them. If I have no right to portray the people I see who may be visibly different than me, am I then only allowed to do self-portraits? If I do only self-portraits, at what point does introspection limit my understanding of others? Can I justify my looking outward as my desire to remain a lifelong learner?
More to come…
The New Renaissance Mindset 