Preserving Ernie Barnes’s Legacy in Paint Tubes
The late artist and athlete who rendered joyous scenes of Black life, dance, and motion is the subject of renewed institutional attention as his daughter, Erin Barnes, works to conserve his studio practice.
Ernie Barnes, the renowned Los Angeles-based painter and former professional football player, left behind an extensive collection of materials in his garage studio, including paint tubes, brushes, and containers filled with acrylic paints from Liquitex, Grumbacher, and Winsor & Newton. His daughter, Erin, recently began to recognize the significance of these artifacts in preserving her father's legacy.
"I realized how much of the physical studio still existed through the paint tubes and brushes, and I felt a responsibility to preserve them as part of a record of his historical practice," Barnes shared with Hyperallergic. Despite the $15.3 million sale of his iconic work "The Sugar Shack" in 2022, Barnes often remains overshadowed by other contemporary art figures such as Jacob Lawrence, Amy Sherald, and Kerry James Marshall.
A documentary about his life, titled "Who is Ernie Barnes," is set to be released in July, and a special exhibition titled "Good Times: The Artistic Journey of Ernie Barnes" opened at the Canton Museum of Art in Ohio on August 18. Additionally, some of his works will be featured at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, which is set to open to the public on September 22.
Barnes' journey began in Durham, North Carolina, during a time of Jim Crow segregation when museums did not allow Black people entry. He honed his artistic skills from books and catalogs, inspired by his mother and childhood sketches. Even as a college football star and NFL player, Barnes continued to sketch, capturing the movements and forms of his teammates and the world around him.
Written by urgent.news from Hyperallergic's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
