Biography of Kerry James Marshall, Contemporary Artist

Kerry James Marshall (born October 17, 1955) is a prominent contemporary African-American artist. He broke ground for black artists by rising to the upper echelon of the art world while remaining steadfastly dedicated to presenting work that explores the black experience in America. His experience growing up in the Watts neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles profoundly influenced his art. Fast Facts: Kerry James Marshall Occupation: ArtistBorn: October 17, 1955 in Birmingham, AlabamaEducation: Otis College of Art and DesignSelected Works: Voyager (1992), Many Mansions (1994), Portrait of Nat Turner with the Head of His Master (2011)Notable Quote: One of the reasons I paint black people is because I am a black person. Early Life and Career Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Kerry James Marshall moved with his family to the Watts neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles as a young child. He grew up surrounded by the Civil Rights and Black Power movements of the 1960s. He was an eyewitness to the Watts riots that occurred in August 1965. As a teenager, Kerry James Marshall took part in a summer drawing class at the Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles after a teacher nominated him for inclusion. There, he was shown the studio of artist Charles White who later became his instructor and mentor. Kerry James Marshall enrolled as a full-time student at the Otis Art Institute in 1977 and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1978. He moved to Chicago in 1987 after completing a residency at the Studio Museum in Harlem, New York City. Marshall began teaching at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1993, and he earned a genius grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation in 1997. History as Subject Matter Many of Kerry James Marshalls works reference events from American history as primary subject matter. One of the most prominent is 1992s Voyager. The boat featured in the painting is named Wanderer. It references the story of the former yacht that was the last ship to bring a large number of African slaves to America. In violation of a 50-year-old law prohibiting the importation of slaves, the Wanderer arrived at Jekyll Island in Georgia in 1858 with over 400 slaves on board. It was the final event in the history of the African slave trade in America. In 2011, Marshall painted Portrait of Nat Turner with the Head of His Master. It is a nearly full-length portrait in the manner of traditional portraiture, but the grisly image of a man slaughtered in his sleep lying behind Nat Turner is chilling. The historical event referenced is the two-day slave rebellion led by Nat Turner in 1831. Housing Projects In 1994, Kerry James Marshall painted a series titled The Garden Project. He depicts life in public housing projects in the U.S. inspired by his own experience living in Nickerson Gardens, a 1,066-unit apartment complex in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. His paintings in the series explore the dichotomy between the imagery evoked by the names of the projects using the word Gardens and the reality of harsh life in public housing. It is a metaphor for the lives of African-Americans in contemporary America. One of the key pieces is 1994s Many Mansions. It shows three black men in formal clothing performing the manual labor of planting flowers for a housing project. Their depiction is at the center of Marshalls juxtaposition of the ideal evoked by the concept of a public housing project with the reality of the residents experiences. Another painting in the series, Better Homes, Better Gardens, shows an idyllic young black couple strolling through a brick housing project. The inspiration for this piece is Chicagos Wentworth Gardens. It is notorious for a history of gang violence and drug problems. Concept of Beauty Another frequent subject of Kerry James Marshalls work is the concept of beauty. The people depicted in Marshalls paintings usually have very dark, almost flat black, skin. He explained to interviewers that he created the extreme to specifically draw attention to the distinctive appearance of black Americans. In a series of 1994 paintings of models, Marshall depicts male and female black models. The male model is shown against a mostly white background that emphasizes the blackness of his skin. He is lifting his shirt to presumably share the power of his physique with viewers. He painted a topless female black model with the names Linda, Cindy, and Naomi inscribed in the upper right. They are the iconic supermodels Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, and Naomi Campbell. In another model painting, Marshall juxtaposed the image of the female black models face with those of blonde white models. Mastry In 2016, Kerry James Marshalls work was the subject of the historically significant retrospective Mastry at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. The exhibition covered 35 years of Marshalls work with nearly 80 pieces displayed. It was an unprecedented celebration of the work of an African-American artist. In addition to its overt celebration of the black experience in America, many observers saw Kerry James Marshalls work as a reaction to the movement of much of the art establishment away from traditional painting. Unlike celebrated experiments in minimalist and conceptual art, Marshall creates his works with an eye toward arranging his subject matter in ways that stretch back to the traditions of art from the Renaissance era. Kerry James Marshall has explained that he is more interested in being a painter than creating art. When the Mastry exhibition traveled to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, Kerry James Marshall selected 40 works from the museums permanent collection that he particularly valued as inspiration. The exhibit within an exhibit was titled Kerry James Marshall Selects. Public Works Controversy In 2018, Kerry James Marshalls paintings made headlines in two controversies over the value of public art contrasted with the benefit of public services that could be provided with money earned from sales of the art. In May, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority of Chicago sold the monumental piece Past Times to rap artist and entrepreneur Sean Combs for $21 million. The original purchase price was $25,000. The piece previously hung in the McCormick Place convention center on public display. The money earned from the auction provided a windfall to the budget of the public agency. Even more controversial was the announcement by Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel that the city would sell the 1995 Kerry James Marshall painting Knowledge and Wonder. It hung on the wall in one of the citys public library branches. Commissioned for $10,000, experts pegged the value of the painting at somewhere near $10 million. Emmanuel planned to use the funds from the sale to expand and upgrade a branch of the library on the citys west side. After intense criticism from the public and the artist himself, the city withdrew plans to sell the work in November 2018. Source Tate, Greg, Charles Gaines, and Laurence Rassel. Kerry James Marshall. Phaidon, 2017.

In America, There Is A Huge Educational Gap Between...

In America, there is a huge educational gap between actualizers and strugglers. While the mass population is told that America is â€Å"free,† strugglers feel the thorns of the lash of bondage through education. In most schools in America, the foundation for the type of education entrenched in students is based on two things: socioeconomic status and geographical location. Consequently, strugglers are forced into a system of repeated oppression merely because they do not possess the means of capital. They can be classifies as strugglers because they lack means to consume. According to Google.com, the denotative definition of a struggler is a person who struggles with difficulties or with great effort. On the other hand, the connotative†¦show more content†¦Degrees and their significance is solely based on the education that the given student received because they will know how to use their degree or lack thereof based on their primary and secondary education, and stru gglers who received a poor education will be in an unfortunate place. Poor education in school and no access to money is no excuse to give up because if one does not have an adequate education, they cannot qualify for a degree that will potentially elevate their socioeconomic status. Born into a struggler family infested with homelessness, destitution, and poverty, I chose to educate myself outside of the classroom because my school failed to provide an adequate education to be successful in today’s world. I chose to study abroad in France, which was a complete learning experience in itself. Despite being in a struggler school, an exchange student foundation, American Field Service (AFS), presented the idea of studying abroad. They offered anyone who wanted to embark on this once in a lifetime journey a full scholarship of $15,000. Initially, I thought that it was too good to be true, but I ended up being the only student in my school that went abroad for a year. After experiencing an entirely different way of life, I recognized the historical d ifferences of

Statement of Goal Letter free essay sample

When necessary I shall visit the campus’s Learning Assistance Center to improve my knowledge and skills in the basic academic disciplines. In the future as a seasoned university student, I shall volunteer my time to assist future students. A 4. 0 GPA and prestigious academic honors, such as Dean’s List and/or President’s List, are of interest to me, but I believe pursuing academic excellence shall help these fall right into place. My initial stride toward my professional objective will be to attain a Bachelor’s degree in the science of Nursing. Once successful, I shall press on to put my acquired knowledge and skills into practice as a professional in the science of Nursing. Furthermore, it is my ultimate goal to continue my pursuit in higher education in the science of Pharmacology. I have faith in that the university’s strict academic discipline shall steer me on a narrow path towards academic excellence. We will write a custom essay sample on Statement of Goal Letter or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I am aware that the university has implemented the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) standard and I am well aware of the academic probation I could be subject to if I were to fail to meet this standard. It is this academic discipline that shall make academic excellence a top priority as a student. I am well aware of the high level of discipline in the Nursing program once one has been accepted into such prestigious program. For example, out of 200 or more applicants only 80 are admitted on average to this program. In addition, once one is accepted in the program one must maintain a 2. 5 or above average to remain in the program. No slack is given and shortcomings are dismissed. Experiencing such a vigorous program shall prepare me in becoming a promising candidate that will compete in the healthcare profession. Statement of Goal Letter free essay sample When necessary I shall visit the campuss Learning Assistance Center to improve my knowledge and skills in the basic academic disciplines. In the future as a seasoned university student, I shall volunteer my time to assist future students. A 4. 0 GAP and prestigious academic honors, such as Deans List and/or Presidents List, are of interest to me, but I believe pursuing academic excellence shall help these fall right into place. My initial stride toward my professional objective will be to attain a Bachelors degree in the science of Nursing.Once successful, shall press on o put my acquired knowledge and skills into practice as a professional in the science of Nursing. Furthermore, it is my ultimate goal to continue my pursuit in higher education in the science of Pharmacology. I have faith in that the university strict academic discipline shall steer me on a narrow path towards academic excellence. We will write a custom essay sample on Statement of Goal Letter or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Am aware that the university has implemented the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) standard and am well aware of the academic probation could be subject to if I were to fail to meet this standard. It is this academic discipline that shall aka academic excellence a top priority as a student. I am well aware of the high level of discipline in the Nursing program once one has been accepted into such prestigious program. For example, out of 200 or more applicants only 80 are admitted on average to this program. In addition, once one is accepted in the program one must maintain a 2. 5 or above average to remain in the program. No slack is given and shortcomings are dismissed.

The balanced score card

Categorization of the performance measures Learning/Growth Internal Business Processes Customer Service Financial Employee training hours Employee satisfaction Employee turnover New loans created New products introduced Sales calls to potential customers Referrals Cross sells New accounts Customer satisfaction Customer retention Thank you calls/cards to new and existing customers loan balances deposit balances non-interest income Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on The balanced score card specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Illustrated above are two causal chains that could possibly lead to improved loans, deposits and non-interest income. Analysis of the selected cause and effect chains Chain one: Employee satisfaction Motivated employees with the zeal to grow businessSales calls to potential customersNew accounts, Customer satisfactionImproved loans, deposits and non-interest income. In this chain all the four perspectives are linked to illustrate how employee satisfaction can lead to a chain that eventually impacts on the ultimate goals in the financial perspective. Employee satisfaction is vital in any industry because it helps the people deliver in the overall strategy of the firm. Employee satisfaction can be achieved through a number of ways: a good and friendly working environment, competitive remuneration, adequate technology at the work place, a good employee retention plan, learning and training and the opportunity for growth. When all these measures are in place and the company has a motivated staff base, there is a higher chance of the staff driving the company agenda proactively e.g. through initiatives like calling potential customers. Proactive business development would then to lead to more accounts and better customer retention which ultimately lead to an increase in loans, deposits and non-interest income. Chain two: Employee turnoverIncreased empl oyee retention and better skill setsMore referrals, More cross sells, Better customer relationshipsNew accounts, Customer retentionImproved loans, deposits and non-interest income.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the second causal chain, employee turnover is the starting point. Employee retention has been established to have immense benefits especially with service oriented businesses like banks. Employee retention has in itself been considered a financial gain because of the resources it saves companies for example in hiring costs and training and development costs. Employee retention also means that the company retains highly skilled labor that has a positive impact on customer service (Albright Hibbets, 2001). With the best skills set in the different areas of expertise, there are likely to be more referrals and cross sells. This would lead to more accounts being opened, higher customer retention and as above, improvements in the loan book, deposits and non-interest income (Seber, n.d., para. 3). In addition, retention can reduce the rate of default because of the experience of the credit team. This would lead to lower provisions for loans and a better bottom line. We can therefore not overstate the importance of employee retention in the successful realization of company strategies. Balanced score card: CASE B In this case, we will carry out a comparative review of the performance of the balanced score card implemented branches against the other 5 branches. Based on the performance, we will gauge the effectiveness of the balanced score card. The table below shows a quick analysis of the performance of the 10 branches: Branch Loans Growth Deposit Growth Income Growth A 9.47% 10.5% 15.8% B 16.90% 3.1% 7.3% C 13.55% 9.9% 11.6% D 3.55% 7.4% 5.4% E 0.93% 1.0% -0.3% F 2.39% -1.1% 3.0% G 0.00% 0.3% 4.4% H 1.53% 0.5% -1.3% I 0 .59% 2.3% 4.6% J 4.71% 4.0% 3.2% Av. A-E 8.88% 6.38% 7.97% Av. F-J 1.84% 1.21% 2.78% Graphical analysis of the branch performance Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on The balanced score card specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More From the figures and graphs above, it is clear that the implementation of the balanced score card was effective. It can be seen that 4 out of the five branches where the balanced score card was implemented reported a positive growth in all the performance areas: loans, deposit growth and income growth. The average growth for the 5 branches using the balanced score card was also much higher than the rest with a growth of 8.88%, 6.38% and 7.97% for loans, deposits and income respectively. This was in comparison of an average growth of 1.84%, 1.21% and 2.78% for loans, deposits and income respectively for the other 5 branches not using the balanced score card. In fact, the average g rowth rate for loans for the 5 branches implementing the balanced score card was almost 8 times the average for the other five branches. The same pattern was evident for the deposits with the balanced score card branch average almost six times that of the other branches and more than double the growth for income. It must however be noted from the above figures that the strategies employed by the managers in implementation affected the effectiveness of the balanced score card. In branch E, for example, when interviewed about the balanced score card, the employees seemed like they did not understand why they had targets. They did not seem to understand how the BSC would help them achieve their goals and had no clear picture of what rewards they stood to gain if they met their targets. This situation clearly left the team unenthusiastic and unmotivated. The results recorded by branch E was a manifestation of the failure in implementation of the balanced score card by the branch managem ent in branch E. Further, branch E was the only branch out of the 5 using the BSC that reported a negative growth in income. It performed worse than G, I and J which were not even part of the BSC test group. It goes without saying that the branch management failed to communicate and engage effectively with their team at the branch. For a successful implementation of the score card, the branch management should have had a session with the team to clearly articulate the objective of the score card and agree on a way forward on how to achieve their targets. By doing this, they would have gotten ‘buy in’ from the team and gotten more effort and support in their quest to grow the branch.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Branch A registered the highest growth in income because the staff seemed to have a very clear picture of all the areas they needed to adjust in order to get growth; they were clear that they needed to balance loans and deposits with growth. This allowed the branch to grow evenly in all the performance areas: loans, deposit and income. Branch B registered high growth in loans but a low one in deposits. This led to a lower growth in income. The pattern of growth in branch B could be attributed to the fact that the loan representative had quite a clear picture of what the credit team needed to do to achieve growth in credit. The teller in branch B seemed less enthusiastic about the balanced score card approach. This probably affected the performance of branch B because the tellers are the people involved in the mobilization of deposits. Branch C on the other hand delivered good results because the teams seemed to have an understanding of what the BSC was about and how important the pe rformance of each team member was to the success of the branch. Conclusion It was clear that the balanced score card is a good tool in improving performance as evidenced in the average and individual results of the test branches. However, the implementation must be gotten right for maximum benefits to be realized. Branch A had the highest average growth because the whole team seemed to have been part of the BSC process and owned the score card. As evidenced in this branch, the balanced score card can achieve maximum benefits in the branch if management engage all staff in the implementation process (Silverthorne, 2008). The managers must engage the staff and listen to their input, clearly communicate the purpose of using the BSC and share the individual and group benefits associated with meeting the set targets. It was also clear that all the four perspectives of the balanced score card play an important role in the realization of the overall company strategy. Reference List Albrigh t, T., Davis, S. Hibbets, A. (2001). Tri-Cities Community Bank: A Balanced Scorecard Case. Strategic Finance, 83(4), 54-60. Retrieved from https://mytlc.trident.edu/ Seber, L. (n.d.). The Advantages of Employee Retention: e how contributor. Retrieved from https://bizfluent.com/info-7980915-advantages-employee-retention.html Silverthorne, S. (2008). Executing Strategy with the Balanced Scorecard. Thomson Learning, South Melbourne. This case study on The balanced score card was written and submitted by user Camryn Campos to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.