Lamps illuminate the dimly lit dining space, where on the table sits neatly arranged utensils and plates. Surrounding the main table are smaller tables, littered with items such as a cigar, a wine flask, a book, a pipe, and letters, to list a few. This is one’s view when standing inside of Whitfield Lovell’s Visitation: The Richmond Project. Inside this installation, I am transported—not just geographically, but emotionally—from San Antonio to a dining room somewhere in the U.S. South. The atmosphere feels timeless; I’ve entered a Black American home steeped in history.
Lovell draws a young Black couple with Conté crayons directly on the wood planks that make up the walls of the space. Lingering by the entryway is a young man in a suit, standing with his right hand in his pocket. The other is a young woman, standing beside a piano. Their soft, ghostly forms blend with the wood, suggesting a connection to the history embedded in the materials, as if the walls themselves hold their stories. These figures, placed within a domestic setting filled with curated objects, evoke the presence of lives once lived or imagined. The room is a dedication to the first major African American entrepreneurial community in Jackson Ward, Richmond, Virginia. The space has an eerie aura, and as I stood inside, I felt like an intruder. Who were the young man and woman who stared at me as I walked through the space?
Why do I feel out of place? I wondered this for some time, only to stumble upon an interview between Whitfield Lovell and Jen Sudul-Edwards, the Mint Museum’s Chief Curator and Curator of Contemporary Art. Lovell states that “my job as an artist with each piece I do is to not stop until I’ve reached the place where I feel like I’ve touched the intangible thing.”
As I stood amidst Lovell’s creation, the tension between the tangible objects and the intangible stories they represent left me unsettled. This unease, I realized, mirrors the artist’s intent to evoke a presence that is felt rather than seen. Lovell’s hyperrealist Conté drawings are based on found photos of unknown African Americans.
Continuing with his practice of hyperrealist portraiture, Lovell extends his meticulous approach to The Card Pieces, a series in which he transforms an entire deck of vintage playing cards—plus one joker—into evocative portraits. Drawing directly onto the aged surfaces of the cards, Lovell combines their existing textures with his precise use of charcoal and pastel to create a striking interplay between medium and subject. Each card is intuitively assigned to an individual, selected by Lovell to best represent the person he draws. Some figures gaze directly at the viewer. Their unflinching stares evoke a sense of confrontation, as though demanding recognition of their existence and stories. Others look away, their sidelong glances suggesting introspection, mystery, or a connection to something unseen.
Additionally, Lovell uses clothing and accessories, such as hats, to further distinguish his subjects. Some wear hats, signifying formality, style, or perhaps a marker of status, while others are unadorned, their simplicity drawing focus to their expressions and features. In one example, a woman gazes directly at the viewer, and her unflinching stare exudes confidence. She wears a hat, suggesting elegance and self-possession. Lovell pairs her with the Three of Clubs card, a choice that resonates with notions of growth, vitality, and fortuity—qualities reflected in her commanding presence. These details serve to emphasize the individuality of this woman, underscoring that even within anonymity, personal identity and social context persist.
The use of playing cards in The Card Pieces is more than a clever framing device; it connects the work to the long tradition of card games in the African American community. Cards have historically served as a source of social bonding, leisure, and resilience, representing moments of joy and connection amidst struggle.
In its entirety, Passages pays tribute to runaway enslaved people who journeyed to a Contraband camp on the shore of Chattanooga, Tennessee. The people may be anonymous, and yet, their stories reflect a reality that continues to shape the livelihood of Black Americans.
Whitfield Lovell: Passages is the most comprehensive exhibition to date by Whitfield Lovell. The McNay is the last of six stops for the national exhibition tour of Whitfield Lovell: Passages, presented by the American Federation of Arts. Additional support for the national tour and exhibition catalogue are provided by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Whitfield Lovell: Passages is on display at the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas, until January 19, 2025.
Comments