Artist, Archibald Motley: I think that every picture should tell a story. And if a picture doesn't tell a story, then it's not a picture.
Learning Specialist, Emma Waldman: That was Archibald Motley Jr, the artist who made this work. Motley was born in New Orleans, but he lived for most of his life in Chicago.
Archibald Motley: I can recall when I was in the fifth grade, and I used to make sketches even when I was a kid then, you know.
I wanted to get people together, you see. So I made the habit, in order to study them, to go to places where they gathered a lot, like churches and movie houses, dance halls, skating rinks. Because I wanted to paint my people just the way they were.
Emma Waldman: Most of the artworks on this tour have been focusing on individual identity. In this painting, Motley is showcasing a group of people singing and dancing together in a church. He's representing collective identity, which focuses on the sense of how you find yourself in a group, and shared beliefs, goals, and experiences.
Motley was also really interested in making these individuals distinct.
Archibald Motley: I wanted to get the character. And you notice in all my paintings where you see a group of people, you notice they're not all the same color, they're not all black and they're not all brown. And I try to get each one of them character, you know, as individuals.
Emma Waldman: So, here you can see different facial features, expressions, poses, clothing to allow each individual to stand out on their own.
How would you describe your collective identity? Which places or groups of people would you include?