Malik Roberts
It Couldn’t Be Unseen from the BLK & BLUE series, 2018
Oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas
36 x 36 inches
Courtesy of Jonathon Madrigano and ABXY Gallery
Through his lived experience and research, painter and multimedia artist Malik Roberts explores the causes of mental illnesses that disproportionately affect communities of color in the BLK & BLUE series, with a focus on anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These conditions result from environments of systemic oppression, seen in historic redlining, food and banking deserts, and the criminalization of spaces populated by communities of color. It Couldn’t Be Unseen focuses on the physical and emotional effects of PTSD, incorporating augmented reality so that viewers may explore the condition’s complex emotions.
