Lorna Simpson

Each of these atmospheric photomontages includes a portrait cut from vintage Ebony and Jet magazine advertisements. Watercolor, in shades of gray and black, turn a woman’s hair into smoke in Ebony Before, while in Dark Cloud, a man’s face and neck emerge from an afro-like halo which seems heavy with rain. For Riunite & Ice #15, the hair of a woman bedecked in diamonds is replaced by an iceberg and the silhouette of a man. Under the shadow of the iceberg, the teardrop diamond earrings and the ornate necklace which adorn the woman seem like drops of melting water. What was once an advertisement, selling not only diamonds but also a lifestyle to African Americans in the 20th Century, has been delicately transformed into an evocative rumination on psychological states that double as natural phenomena.