The artists discuss the issues of being a black artist, as well as the difficulties in making a living and supporting oneself. Within the symposium, many of the artists shared the same sentiment that the demise of the black artist is the fact that the black community overlooks them, and the white community excludes them. Black artists lack the opportunity to exhibit in large scale galleries, therefore denied access to public recognition and a break into the mainstream art world. Because black artists are not entering the art world at the same degree as white artists, they are unable to make large sales of their works, there fore disabling black artists from making a living.
Another issue discussed was the issue of connecting art to the black community. Romare Bearden is a key example of an artist whose work communicates to and exemplifies the black community. One of the artists in the symposium, Tom Lloyd, stressed the importance of black artists bringing are to black people so that the community can have feel a sense of pride and identity through their race. Black artists have the capability to define what it means to be black, and create positive imagery. Hale Woodruff, the other artist I will focus on in my paper, emphasizes the need for black artists to personalize their work so that people can understand what it means to be black through the experiences of the artists.
Throughout the symposium, various opinions and views of the black artist are discussed. Because each artist comes from a different background and time period, the diversity in their opinion of what it means to be black and an artist create an enlightening discussion on the black artist.
