Creating the Calabash artwork
Inspiration of the Art
One of my greatest honors during 2008 was creating a commissioned work of
art in honor of Julian Bond, National Chairman of the Board, NAACP. Although
I knew that Mr. Bond is a pioneer within civil rights, I wanted to make the
piece personal as well as relevant to the community at large. I searched online
where I found that he was a poet— I read his poem I
Too, Hear America Singing, which was first published in 1960 while
he was still a college student. The words spoke to my heart. I thought about
how our country looks today…The historic things that are happening in
my lifetime—things that my forefathers only dreamed of. So as I read
Mr. Bond’s poem, it reminded me that Americans of African descent are
still standing— We are standing on the shoulders of those who came before
us. We are standing up for what we believe is right, and we are standing by
faith. Calabash represents the instrumental song of African Americans...
