artist statement:
"By the cops" is an acrylic representational art painting that depicts the social issue of police brutality. The title got its name from the situations of this problem; the cruelty, abuse, injustice, and so much more that are caused by the cops. This problem has been transpiring a lot recently all around the world, and the goal of this artwork is to spread awareness of this sickening and brutal issue. With one of the recent and shocking death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, this caused thousands of people to protest against police brutality and angered millions of people around the world, especially the unfairness and injustice of cops towards the black people. Which then started the "Black Lives Matter" movement. This work is to highlight that several police officers have taken too much power of their jobs and abused it for the worse, and this is to demand justice for all the victims of police brutality.
The meaning behind the painting shows the emotions behind police brutality. The victim, although dead, had a lot of things going on inside his head before he died. He felt the urge to fight for his life, he thought about "is this the way I'm dying?", he felt confused, he thought about his loved ones, and so many more, which explains the messy scribbles above his head. On the other hand, the cop felt anger, hatred, pride, and supremacy towards the victim, without considering his life.
The art style of this painting is 2D art, as well as abstract art. The artist decided to use this art style because it gets straight to the point without much detail and complexity, and it is clean-looking. The abstract art style of the painting lets the viewers look at the painting longer for them to really see the message and the truth behind it. The artist wants the viewer to see that the way it was painted could also speak for itself, the artist also wants the painting to express the deep emotions and meaning behind it in order for the viewers to be able to feel the sense of urgency for change.
Just because the protests and movements against police brutality, especially towards the black people are not occurring much recently does not mean that this fight is over. If everyone wants a better world for everyone and all of our children to live in, then we must all fight and remember this, which is the purpose of this painting; to remind everyone that this is not over and will not be unless everyone can assure that this situation will not happen again. We should not and never treat this as a "trend" because it isn't one.
surface: 8 x 10 canvas
medium: acrylic paint
materials: permanent marker, flat brushes, round brushes
