Gina Washington—Monday’s Child
From the artist:
Monday's Child
Monday's child is fair of face,
Tuesday's child is full of grace.
Wednesday's child is full of woe,
Thursday's child has far to go.
Friday's child is loving and giving,
Saturday's child works hard for a living.
And the child born on the Sabbath day
Is bonny and blithe, good and gay
In my work are themes connected to childhood sayings and fairytales that influenced my upbringing and others. They also reflect how people respond to one another globally. Cautionary tales, fortune predictors, and morality stories guided parents in raising their children. In western tradition, these stories supplanted identity and the understanding of the Black experience. They perpetuated a narrative of inclusive exclusion. It was not enough to work towards or live up to the ideals of being American in America in the Black family. Accepting yourself comes with the understanding that that idea of acceptance is unattainable from others outside of your culture. This project, Monday's Child, is an archaeological dig into a family, identity, expectations, and the dualistic nature of Black Identity in America.
The poem is the inspiration for this project. Was it prophetic that I was born on a Friday? I claim to be what Friday represents, loving and giving. My sister came first and is no longer here. She was born on a Wednesday. She died of complications from colon cancer. She was a medical doctor and that was not enough to save her from the toxic nature of being Black in America. Together we represent balance in the energy created in this poem. Her absence is significant. Our parents and extended family used all the tools they possessed to supply us with knowledge of our ancestors to provide for our future. We discovered other ways to survive. Monday's child will uncover those connections and examine this notion of identity within a society full of contradictions. Within a nation beginning to discuss the nature of systemic racism and finally declare it a public health crisis, all roads to understanding, through art, are necessary.
This project will consist of large-scale photographic portraits of my family printed on canvas, manipulated through collage techniques, hand weaving, embedded augmented reality and, adhered to wooden panels for display. The images will illustrate Monday's Child, and the portraits will represent each day. The hand-building/weaving of each image connects the process to the raising of children. The objects collaged are symbolic of the people no longer present.
It is necessary to excavate and reclaim identities in the making of these images. History now has to be told from the perspective of those experiencing it. Each story in the canon of the Black experience has a ripple effect, revealing the layers that need to be shed, uncovering the layers that demonstrate resilience. We Black folks need to humanize our own experiences despite the opposition that tries to prove we don't matter. Monday's child dispels one tradition of influence to allow another to emerge free from and or despite the western headset.