Tar Baby vs. St. Sebastian (work of art)

Ideas clave sobre esta obra de arte

• Using a cast of his own body, Michael Richards transformed himself into a gilded memorial to the Tuskegee Airmen, the African American flying squadron of World War II. The gold-painted figure, complete with a pilot’s helmet and uniform, is suspended on a metal pole and features dozens of small airplanes crashing into his arms and torso.
• The title of this sculpture refers to a Southern folktale and to the story of St. Sebastian, who was shot with arrows after refusing to deny his faith. Despite the innocent origins of the “Tar Baby” folktale, the term has become a derogatory term used against Black individuals. 
• Michael Richards’s work pays tribute to the Tuskegee Airmen and to other historical and contemporary instances of racial inequality, such as the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiments and the beating of Rodney King.
• In 2001 Richards was killed in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center while he was working in World Views studio during his Lower Manhattan Cultural Council residency. While it was intended to be a tribute to the Tuskegee Airmen, Tar Baby vs. St. Sebastian has become a memorial to the artist himself. 

Más información

For most of his career, Michael Richards created sculptures and art installations that paid tribute to the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African American Air Force pilots during World War II. Their heroism and bravery were not fully recognized until long after the war ended.

Recursos adicionales

Recursos para los profesores: