The TED Talk that I decided upon is Titus Kaphar’s discussion/lecture on how art has the unique ability to rewrite history with a modern perspective. Kaphar’s main point is how most classical paintings and sculptures depict black people in the background, always second to the white people in the painting. The visual comparison of the original paintings versus Kaphar’s modified versions specifically emphasizes the difference in both placement and perceived importance of the whites in the painting rather than that of the black people in the painting. Kaphar’s decision to accentuate the placement of the black characters highlights the intense racial prejudice within the more contemporary paintings. He specifically mentioned that he can find anything on the lace that is in the dress of a white person in the painting, but is unable to find any details on the black boy in the painting. Since the painter himself clearly did not believe the black character to be important at all by placing him in the background, art historians nor anyone is at fault for not paying attention to him. People who did not pick up on the difference of emphasis on white people in classical paintings would not understand Titus’ work and would most likely view them as an attempt to “distort” or “re-write” history. With that said, Kaphar’s paintings are set to begin a lengthy, meaningful discussion on black censorship within classical art as a whole.
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I like how you say “art has the unique ability to rewrite history with a modern perspective” because I think that is very true, even though art doesn’t have the actual ability to write something. Sometimes art can speak to some people better than words can. I think Titus Kaphar’s point was very strong. I agree with the idea that “he can find anything on the lace that is in the dress of a white person, but is unable to find any details on the black boy in the painting.” I find this to be a powerful statement and it really gets his point across about how little information is available about black history. I don’t have a different perspective on what you’re saying. I agree with the facts being said in this blog.
This TED talk definitely had a very strong message that was being conveyed throughout. Kaphar was very passionate about it and felt the need to bring attention to this issue that’s been pushed underneath the rug for al long time. I agree with how you said: “Kaphar’s decision to accentuate the placement of the black characters highlights the intense racial prejudice within the more contemporary paintings.” I also agree with how you used the example of how Kaphar found more detail on the lace dress worn by a white women then the details on the black boy in the background. This relates back to the idea that black history is often times ignored or grazed over. This statement is very powerful and eye opening. I also liked how you mentioned that those who do not recognize the difference of both races are depicted will not understand Kaphar’s work. This proves the importance of Kaphar’s work and how it needs to be brought to our attention. Overall a strong blog post with important points made.