Brick House - Alex Hawkins


Brick House, June 5, 2019 - May 2021 on High Line at the Spur, at 30th St. and 10th Ave. The Artist, Simone Leigh. A 16-foot tall bronze bust of a Black woman with a torso that combines the folds of a skirt to resemble a clay house. It was constructed in Philadelphia at Stratton Studio. The sculpture's head is crowned by an afro with cornrow braids framing the afro, each ending in a cowrie shell. The sculpture is infused with many architectural forms from regions across West Africa and the Southern United States ranging from Batammaliba architecture from Benin, to the restaurant Mammy’s Cupboard in Natchez, Mississippi. The title is given from the term for a strong Black woman who “stands with the strength, endurance, and integrity of a house made of bricks”.1 The structure contrasts against its environment; a clay body surrounded by glass and steel shooting up higher than its older bricked companions. This Black female figure challenges its viewers to reflect on the world around us and how it reflects values, customs, and traditions and for some forces time to reflect on ways they had to change for acceptance in society.  Above all else, this piece is truly an inspiration. 

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