Clifton Henri: The Wait We Carry
Jackson Junge Gallery is proud to present 鈥淭he Wait We Carry,鈥� a solo exhibition by Chicago photographer, Clifton Henri. This series features eight photographs representing the experience of being Black in America. So often Black Americans are told to 鈥渨ait鈥� for change. However, waiting holds 鈥渨eight鈥� and that weight is heavy. The weight and heaviness that Black people have been carrying for 100鈥檚 of years continue to pass on, essentially passing the weight/wait on to the next generation. 鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� is a collection that has now become Henri鈥檚 most well-known and vulnerable body of work to date.
鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� is a series that began in 2020, a year of social unrest, racial inequities, national news stories of police brutality, and personal changes in Henri鈥檚 life; all during a worldwide pandemic. This was a time in Henri鈥檚 life and career where he felt it was time to get more vulnerable with his work, and create a series as a form of expression, representation, and activism. 鈥淭he murder of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter protests, the isolation of the pandemic 鈥� it was all so heavy. But I kept coming back to this idea of waiting. How we, as Black people have been told to wait for justice, for equality, for things to change. And then I started thinking about the weight of that waiting 鈥� how we carry it, how it gets passed down. That鈥檚 when I knew I had to create 鈥淭he Wait We Carry.鈥�
鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� combines multiple elements of Henri鈥檚 existing photography style as well as new additions collectors have not seen in previous works. Each photograph in this series layers texture, color, and narrative to create an entirely new concept for this series. Behind the subject of each photograph shows a textured background, most of which came from locations in Chicago, New Orleans, Ghana, and Cuba. The subject matter is the center of each photograph; all of which are children, a very intentional detail. 鈥淚 feel like our children take on the burden of the inequities in our society. We do our best to protect them as they trek through life but also pass on to them a heaviness a child shouldn鈥檛 have to wear.鈥� Henri also incorporates color and typography to not only draw the viewer in, but to additionally nod towards his background and interest in graphic design. All these elements create a new style of photography for Henri, which helps emphasize the shift in the conceptual themes for this collection.
When creating the title piece for this series, Henri wanted to translate the heaviness most Black parents feel of passing on trauma and struggle to their children. 鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� shows a young boy looking tired and defeated while carrying a large duffle bag. Military symbolism in this piece conveys the burden passed down through generations. 鈥淲ar is a battle fought by those who didn鈥檛 start it. Our children walk into a world that鈥檚 already stacked against them, and we try to protect them, but we also pass on the knowledge of survival, the weight of history. The helmet in the piece is armor, but it鈥檚 also a reminder that these battles shouldn鈥檛 be theirs to fight. The duffle bag is both a literal and figurative weight 鈥� what we carry, what we inherit.鈥�
Jackson Junge Gallery is proud to present 鈥淭he Wait We Carry,鈥� a solo exhibition by Chicago photographer, Clifton Henri. This series features eight photographs representing the experience of being Black in America. So often Black Americans are told to 鈥渨ait鈥� for change. However, waiting holds 鈥渨eight鈥� and that weight is heavy. The weight and heaviness that Black people have been carrying for 100鈥檚 of years continue to pass on, essentially passing the weight/wait on to the next generation. 鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� is a collection that has now become Henri鈥檚 most well-known and vulnerable body of work to date.
鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� is a series that began in 2020, a year of social unrest, racial inequities, national news stories of police brutality, and personal changes in Henri鈥檚 life; all during a worldwide pandemic. This was a time in Henri鈥檚 life and career where he felt it was time to get more vulnerable with his work, and create a series as a form of expression, representation, and activism. 鈥淭he murder of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter protests, the isolation of the pandemic 鈥� it was all so heavy. But I kept coming back to this idea of waiting. How we, as Black people have been told to wait for justice, for equality, for things to change. And then I started thinking about the weight of that waiting 鈥� how we carry it, how it gets passed down. That鈥檚 when I knew I had to create 鈥淭he Wait We Carry.鈥�
鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� combines multiple elements of Henri鈥檚 existing photography style as well as new additions collectors have not seen in previous works. Each photograph in this series layers texture, color, and narrative to create an entirely new concept for this series. Behind the subject of each photograph shows a textured background, most of which came from locations in Chicago, New Orleans, Ghana, and Cuba. The subject matter is the center of each photograph; all of which are children, a very intentional detail. 鈥淚 feel like our children take on the burden of the inequities in our society. We do our best to protect them as they trek through life but also pass on to them a heaviness a child shouldn鈥檛 have to wear.鈥� Henri also incorporates color and typography to not only draw the viewer in, but to additionally nod towards his background and interest in graphic design. All these elements create a new style of photography for Henri, which helps emphasize the shift in the conceptual themes for this collection.
When creating the title piece for this series, Henri wanted to translate the heaviness most Black parents feel of passing on trauma and struggle to their children. 鈥淭he Wait We Carry鈥� shows a young boy looking tired and defeated while carrying a large duffle bag. Military symbolism in this piece conveys the burden passed down through generations. 鈥淲ar is a battle fought by those who didn鈥檛 start it. Our children walk into a world that鈥檚 already stacked against them, and we try to protect them, but we also pass on the knowledge of survival, the weight of history. The helmet in the piece is armor, but it鈥檚 also a reminder that these battles shouldn鈥檛 be theirs to fight. The duffle bag is both a literal and figurative weight 鈥� what we carry, what we inherit.鈥�
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