Expo/Crenshaw Station
(Untitled)
Willie Robert Middlebrook Jr., artist
Estimated completion 2010
Willie Middlebrook’s art panels explode with color and human emotion. Portraits of a diverse population collide as the earth swirls between them, a reminder of our shared planet. A newborn baby’s mouth is open, gasping its first breath of air, symbolizing a rebirth of communication between people and an awareness of our relationship with our environment.
Middlebrook draws from a large collection of manipulated photographs to illustrate universal connections. The planet earth is the unifying element in each panel. In some images it appears as an offering, held out for the viewer by two female hands. In other images, it acts on its own agency, rotating around figures, then disappearing from the picture plane.
“My goal is to make art that speaks to us about how we relate to each other, life, love and our relationship to the environment.”