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You searched for: Start Over Creator Smith, Arvie Remove constraint Creator: Smith, Arvie Topic Painting Remove constraint Topic: Painting Region The Valley Library >> Benton County >> Oregon >> United States Remove constraint Region: The Valley Library >> Benton County >> Oregon >> United States

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Description: An oil painting of a dark human figure playing a stringed instrument with a bow, riding a large horse with a red and green tussle hanging from each side of it's mouth. Behind the human figure is a large orange leopard-like cat with large teeth on top of the horse as well., Ile Goree; (54 x 72 inches); oil/canvas; 1997, “Most of my art, in some way or another, tries to answer the question, ‘Who am I?’” says Smith, looking at a particularly aggressive piece that he painted in 2006 called “The Lower 9th.” The large oil-on-canvas features a pastiche of what he calls “derogatory caricatures” (including Aunt Jemima and “black-face” characters) surrounded by images of forgotten souls swept away in Hurricane Katrina. “I’d hate to think that my history began with slavery,” says Smith. “To me, that is a lie. But the remnants still exist today, especially in the way we have been depicted in culture. This is what I try to explore in my work.” (excerpt from online biography at http://www.pnca.edu/exposure/stories/216/arvie-smith), The Oregon Arts Commission has ten Regional Arts Councils that provide delivery of art services and information. The Council for this location is: Linn-Benton Arts. You may view their website at: http://www.artcentric.org/