West
About the West Art Installation and Artists
Willis “Bing” Davis (b.1937) African American, Derrick Davis (b. 1969) African-American, NWANTANTAY MASK FOR NORMAN LEWIS, 2021, Mixed Media, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2021.3
In 2020, the Dayton Metro Library was able to commission site-specific artwork for this library. In a partnership with The Dayton Art Institute, the Burkina Faso Mask (Nwantantay), from the Bwa people and Cantata by Norman Lewis, from the museum’s permanent collection were chosen by the artists as inspiration for this work.
About the Artists
WILLIS 'BING' DAVIS AND DERRICK DAVIS | Dayton artists Willis “Bing” Davis and his son Derrick Davis are inspired by traditional cultures, especially African art and culture which is a foundational aspect of both Davis’ artwork. Each understands the existence of masks as a unifying force that helps a community acknowledge and appreciate the commonality of our existence as one human family. The combination of “Bing” Davis’ spontaneous style and his son Derrick Davis’ more measured approach creates a work of dynamic tension and flow.
Cedric Michael Cox (b. 1976) American, ASCENDING BEYOND, 2021, Acrylic on canvas, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2021.2
In 2020, the Dayton Metro Library was able to commission site-specific artwork for this library. In a partnership with The Dayton Art Institute, Cantata by Norman Lewis, from the museum’s permanent collection was chosen by the artist as inspiration for this work.
About the Artist
CEDRIC MICHAEL COX | Cincinnati artist, Cedric Michael Cox works in a style that falls between surrealism and abstract representation. In this work, Cox employs a similar rhythmic approach to form and balance as Lewis’ Cantata. Striking a balance between the positive and negative
space of the form, Cox references the library’s exterior roof line in the larger diagonal shapes that emerge from the background and connect the individual forms. As these forms interweave and interact with each other they create a greater whole, echoing the library’s vision of community.
Susan Elizabeth Byrnes (b. 1967) American, Rodney Veal (b. 1965) American, Brianna Rhodes (b. 1997) American, CANTATA IN FIVE MOVEMENTS, 2021, Digital photographs on metal, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library. 2021.1
In 2020, the Dayton Metro Library was able to commission site-specific artwork for this library. In a partnership with The Dayton Art Institute, Cantata by Norman Lewis, from the museum’s permanent collection was chosen by these artists as inspiration for this work.
About the Artists
SUSAN BYRNES AND RODNEY VEAL | In this unique collaboration, Cincinnati based artist Susan Byrnes partners with Dayton based dancer and choreographer Rodney Veal and Columbus based former Dayton Contemporary Dance Company dancer Brianna Rhodes to create this series of expressionistic “light paintings”. Inspired by Norman Lewis’ painting Cantata with its visual references to musical notation and movement and John Carter’s 1964 Cantata, a musical composition for voice and piano, Veal choreographed a work which dancer Rhodes performed. Using small lights embedded into the dancer’s costume and a long camera exposure, Byrnes captures gestures as trails of light that make dynamic and finely articulated lines and forms.
Kevin Harris (b. 1961) American, DOMAIN OF DO, 2021, Inkjet print, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2021.4
In 2020, the Dayton Metro Library was able to commission site-specific artwork for this library. In a partnership with The Dayton Art Institute, the Burkina Faso Mask (Nwantantay), from the Bwa people and Cantata by Norman Lewis, from the museum’s permanent collection were chosen by the artist as inspiration for this work.
About the Artist
Kevin Harris is an Ohio based artist whose work combines drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, and digital media. Working within this hybrid of media, Harris recognizes the potential of art as a voice for political commentary and empowerment. For this work, Harris uses digital media to create a panoramic landscape by deconstructing elements of the Bwa mask and appropriating passages from Lewis’ painting, Cantata. This
abstract work embodies movement and rhythm as it imagines the Nwantantay performers who “dance” the mask, honoring Do, the earthly representation of the creator.
James Pate (b. 1960) American, READ AND PLAY, 2020, Oil on primed Masonite, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2021.5
In 2020, the Dayton Metro Library was able to commission site-specific artwork for this library. In a partnership with The Dayton Art Institute, Cantata by Norman Lewis, from the museum’s permanent collection was chosen by the artist as inspiration for this work.
About the Artist
JAMES PATE | Dayton artist James Pate brings his signature representational style to this figurative work. Making a connection between the musical statement found in Lewis’ work and Dayton’s rich music heritage, Pate depicts a young girl with a trumpet in one hand and a library book in the other. The girl’s outstretched arms symbolically embrace Dayton’s creative heritage. Incorporating an Ancient Egyptian pose and additional references to music and literature, Pate links the past and the future symbolically in the arm span of a child.
The Stories Behind the West Art Inspiration
From the Collection of the Dayton Art Institute
NORMAN LEWIS (1909-1967) American, Cantata, 1948, oil on
canvas, 49 3/4 x 41 1/8 inches, Museum purchase with funds provided
by the 1996 Associate Board Art Ball,1996.12
Norman Lewis was one of only a few African American painters closely
associated with the Abstract Expressionists. In this image, Lewis’s
personal style emerges. A series of intricate and dense intertwining
calligraphic shapes emerge from a dark background. Although the forms in this painting appear seductively figural, Lewis’s title suggests musical associations. Cantata is a symphonic term describing a type of vocal composition accompanied by solo instruments, alternating recitative, aria and choral sections. The term is also applied to a longer poem set to chamber music in several movements.
View this artwork and learn more by clicking here, opens a new window or visit The Dayton Art Institute.
BWA PEOPLE, Burkina Faso, Mask (Nwantantay), 20th century,
Pigments on wood, 82 x 17 1/2 x 11 1/2 inches, Gift of Dianne
Komminsk, 2007.112
This mask is called Nwantantay and represents the spirit of air. The Nwantantay plays a major role in the initiation rites of young boys and girls. It also appears at burials and memorial services. The geometric designs have symbolic meaning related to the initiation rites. The checkerboard design on the back represents a separation of knowledge from ignorance. The white crescent on top symbolizes the “moon of the masks” that shines in the seasons when the mask is used in performance.
How did these pieces inspired our artists?
“I was inspired by the Nwantantay Plank Mask not as a static object, but in motion. Echoing Lewis’ method of suggesting music with rhythmic, energetic brushwork, Domain of Do envisions the actions and sounds of Bwa masqueraders whirling to driving drums and whistling flutes while executing high powered pirouettes punctuated by percussive earth quaking stomps with dance moves mimicking the flight of Nwantantay spirits of the air.” Kevin Harris, artist
Inspired by the architecture of the West Branch Building and elements in the painting, Cantata, by Norman Lewis, Ascending Beyond is a vivid celebration of joy and discovery. Every time viewers return to the painting, I want them to be drawn into it and find something new.” Cedric Michael Cox, artist
The musical quality of Norman Lewis’ painting Cantata and the Nwantantay Mask from the Bwa people of Burkina Faso, West Africa, served as inspiration for our first collaborative artwork. This inspiration led us to shapes, colors, patterns, implied sounds and visual movements.” Willis “Bing” Davis and Derrick Ebon Davis, artists
I was inspired to create a representational translation of Lewis’ abstract
expressionistic style and to make a connection between Lewis’ implied
musical statement and Dayton’s diverse musical heritage.”
James Pate, artist
Norman Lewis’ abstract painting Cantata subtly suggests a figure (or possibly two), rendered with delicate lines that are musical and fluid. Our photographs reflect Lewis’ lines and color palette and respond with images of a figure dancing to Cantata by composer John Daniels Carter, using the technique of “light painting” with choreography to render the
shape and energy of the human form experiencing music.” Susan Byrnes, artist
Thank you to our partner,
the Dayton Art Institute, opens a new window.
Photos of ReImagining Works pieces taken by Andy Snow.
