When I was younger, I would see shea butter being sold on the street, and I was interested how people were still coating themselves in the theater of Africanism. You see that in dashikis and hairstyles and music. Rashid Johnson africanismbuttercoat share on social
My composition often goes toward the black middle class or the black super-wealthy or strong historical black figures. Rashid Johnson blackclasscomposition Change image and share on social
Growing up in Chicago, there was a very particular type of home that would display the black Jesus figure. It wasn't a radical home. You wouldn't find these in a Black Panther house. There's still a strong allegiance to Christianity. Rashid Johnson allegianceblackchicago share on social
What I really hoped to do with my work was to at least be able to define my relationship to race. Rashid Johnson definehoperace Change image and share on social
The way that light hits objects in life, three-dimensional objects before you photograph them, is really the story of photography. Rashid Johnson dimensionalhitlife Change image and share on social
When I was young, I remember feeling a real thirst for opportunities around the arts, for learning about how artists function and how institutions work. Rashid Johnson artartistfelt Change image and share on social
Dealing with actors is incredibly complex because they oftentimes are like pieces of clay. They want to be told how you want it done. You have to then decide if you want to be the teller or if you want to give them agency. Rashid Johnson actoragencyclay share on social
My father had a big brick cell phone, before anyone had a cell phone, because he was really just into that kind of thing - communication devices. I grew up between my father's laboratory and my mother's library. Rashid Johnson bigbrickcell share on social
My father owned a small company, called Gundel Electronics, where he did community band radio and some repair stuff. Rashid Johnson bandcallcommunity Change image and share on social
When I was younger, I remember there was a really famous book, and it was called 'The People Could Fly.' And so this idea of, kind of like, black characters kind of jumping into space and kind of the challenge that they presented to gravity I thought was really interesting. Rashid Johnson blackbookcall share on social
