Archibald Motley Jr. did not want to conform to a mold, nor did he wish to paint inside certain expectations, instead he expressed that, “in my paintings I have tried to paint the Negro as I have seen him and as I feel him, in myself without adding or detracting, just being frankly honest.” How we read into what we believe Motley’s painting “Mending Socks,” portrays, however, is entirely up to us as the viewers. If we do not know the artist’s intentions, then we are left to ourselves to ponder over what we want the piece of art to mean to us. In a few cases, however, what the painting is saying speaks out so loudly that we cannot help but take in the artist’s point of view along with our own. Motley made sure that his sentiments growing up as an African-American are portrayed in “Mending Socks,” as he uses his strong background and personal experiences, as well as various artistic techniques, to create a piece that tells a story.
Archibald J. Motley, Jr. used his life and career as an artist to speak to the public about his heritage and the values of his family and race. Motley did not appreciate the role that African-Americans most often took on in paintings, and he felt that, “for many years artists have depicted the Negro as the ignorant southern “darky,” to be portrayed on canvas as something humorous.” Nobody likes to be stereotyped, we all feel as if we are an exception to the rule, and Motley took the stereotypical assumptions of the women of African-American descent and painted them in a new light, in contrast to just showing the plight of the African-American race. As a resident of New Orleans, his goal was to portray the way things really were growing up as an African-American by painting with a heavy conscious of composition, realistic views, color, and lines.
Motley succeeded in this endeavor, and one exceptionally personal painting shows a portrait of his paternal grandmother. Adequately named “Mending Socks,” after the action his grandmother is performing in the portrait, it shows how much love he had for her and the morals she carried with her. “Mending Socks,” showcases a background of personal items, items that tell a story about who the woman in the portrait is, which in turn makes her more real to the viewer, regardless of race. The table is one that may be found in any of our homes, with commonplace items such as books and a bowl of fruit. The crucifix on the wall behind her head is a constant reminder of her faith, and also perhaps of the days of slavery gone by.Items of recognition hang in the background of Motley’s Mending Socks painting, especially recognizable to those of us from the South, with our deeply embedded values of religion, family, and food. These are the things we find important as a region, and Motley keeps this in mind as he places them in the painting. They are items we can relate to, and can picture in our own grandmother’s home, whatever background we come from.
By painting these things in a unique perspective, Motley succeeds in making the subject of the portrait more real to us. The viewer feels a connection to her and therefore is more likely to admit that she is not the stereotypical black woman. Motley feels that by raising this question, he can also raise the question of whether there really is an accurate stereotype. If his grandmother, a proud African-American woman does not fit it, who does?Motley paints using a technique of employing sympathy in his viewers to draw them in to the painting initially. By adding a personal touch, he is allowing the viewer to put the painting in perspective and realize that the portrait of the woman could be almost anyone’s grandmother, performing an everyday task.
The personal objects are not put painted into the limelight, but he does not try to subdue them either. The viewer’s eye is casually drawn around the room after first examining the small, elderly woman in the foreground.The composition of these symbolic items, and their placement in the background of the portrait, keeps the focus on the grandmother in the foreground and gradually draws the viewer’s vision to her surrounding keepsakes. After looking at her, the eye is slowly drawn towards the left and rests upon the large table there. Finally, the viewer’s sight returns full circle as it is drawn towards the door and then at last back towards the woman.
Upon first viewing the painting, it is possible not to even notice the socks on her lap due to their insignificant placement. However, after a second look, one can see where the painting gets its name.The colors that Motley chose to use are for the most part neutral, with variations of white, brown, green, and blue. Perhaps the most outstanding object is the woman’s shawl, as it is orange and contrasts with the beige background behind her. Motley’s choice of color for his grandmother’s shawl may be based on truth, as this could be a favorite article of clothing.
The lines that Motley uses in creating the painting are very obvious and adequately succeed in making the woman look aged and slightly tired. The edges of the walls, the wood grain in the door, and the rocking chair in which she sits are all comprised of very straight edge lines. By painting his grandmother slightly stooped over, with a curving back and downward face, he is showing her age and the way life has taken its toll on her.Also contributing to and affecting the way in which a person observes the painting is the slight imbalance of the painting. The woman looks so small and frail compared to the sturdy and strong-looking table to her left that at first it almost seems as if you are trying to look at too many things at once. The size of the table’s objects are in proportion to the size of the table itself, demanding the viewer to examine them as well as the woman.
Motley, Jr. succeeds in this painting at creating a piece of art that is unique from others that feature African-Americans. Much of African-American art concentrates on the hardships African-Americans have faced, including slavery and the slave trade. Motley, however, uses a variety of painting techniques to push the viewer to realize how dignified growing old and being of African-American descent has the potential to be.
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