Jennifer Mack-Watkins’ current body of work is part of an ongoing celebration of observation and examination to celebrate the beauty, importance, and complexity of positive representation of African American children and women in literature, media, and pop culture. The interest in using aesthetics as a form of resistance against the erasure and invisibility of African American culture through imagery is a continuous investigation.

 

The use of the medium of printmaking symbolizes the fascination of  the process of layering elements, textures, and colors upon one another to create a uniform image through sequential stages. The beauty of printmaking and its connection to history becomes a source of communication. Prints exist as multiples, which enables them to become part of a larger dialogue. The combination of digital methods with hand-drawn are added to create narratives based on particular ideas. Photographic imagery from vintage magazines, advertisements, newspapers, and literature counteract with how media and popular culture flood society with harmful, stereotypical perceptions of African American culture. Through this work there is a seeking to provide a sense of celebration, hope, and imagination.

 

— Jennifer Mack-Watkins