Of the
many people we lost in 2022, one whose
passing flew under the radar was
multimedia artist, mathematician,
Afrofuturist, writer, producer and
activist John Sims, who died Dec. 11 at age 54. Sims -
known for his ritual burning, burying and
rethinking of the confederate flag - was
an important Black artist who spoke out
for justice with his work. His legacy
reminds us of the important role of the
Black artist - to express our culture and
tell our stories, and to speak truth to
power in a racist society.
Born and
raised in Detroit and a graduate of Antioch College, Sims
was a resident of Sarasota, Florida. A
friend and colleague, John never ceased to
amaze and inspire me with his creativity
and the depth and breadth of his artistic
vision. I had the honor to collaborate
with him on a number of projects on issues
ranging from electoral politics to the coronavirus and
Kanye West.
It was
hard to place Sims in a box because he
worked across platforms in a multimedia
environment. For example, John blended
math and art with his Black Pi-inspired quilts, and in
the midst of the COVID pandemic, he
designed Korona Killa, a
COVID-themed video game reminiscent of the
classic game Space Invaders.
Sims was
especially known for his work on
confederate symbols, toxic symbols of
white supremacy, terrorism and trauma for
Black folks. His ritual burning and burying of the
confederate flag every
Memorial Day was an example of the artist
engaged in protest. But he did not leave
it there. John seized control of the
confederate flag - a symbol that continues
to haunt America - by repurposing it for
Black people and painting it red, black
and green.
In Freedom Memorial at Gamble
Plantation, he
envisioned reclaiming a former Florida
plantation, now a state park, and
transforming it into a memorial to the
enslaved Black people and “a place of
possible transformative healing, where the
slave becomes free, the shamed becomes
washed and faith is restored in the
universal sovereignty of human rights.”
But Sims
expressed himself through music, too. On
his album
“AfroDixieRemixes,” John
repurposed the confederate song “Dixie”
with reimagined versions in musical genres
of the African diaspora such as R&B,
gospel, blues, hip-hop, funk, samba and
others. A blues/jazz rendition on the
album is a chilling reminder of Billie
Holiday’s 1939 recording of “Strange
Fruit.” John created, directed and
produced “AfroDixieRemixes” and even
designed the album cover.
Black art
is both personal and political. And at
their greatest, Black artists are here for
the culture, for Black pride and uplift of
the community. When we consider the Harlem
Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s and the
Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and
1970s, Black artists saw their role as to
tell our stories, reflect our experiences
and help make us free. In his essay “Blueprint for Negro
Writing,” Richard
Wright asked: “Shall Negro writing be for
the Negro masses, moulding the lives and
consciousness of those masses toward new
goals, or shall it continue begging the
question of the Negroes’ humanity?”
At this
very moment - in light of the myriad
battles we face, the assaults on basic
rights and Black history, and the threats
to Black life in the form of police guns
and pandemics - art plays a crucial role
in centering our experience, channeling
our emotions, speaking to the audience and
creating narratives that approach the
issues we face. As artist Paul Anthony Smith said,
“As artists, we must be engaged in our
communities. We must listen and observe
the pain of today’s society and transform
this energy into positive action, unlike
the political rhetoric we’ve been fed.”
While
they are expressing their creativity,
blowing up established boundaries and
making it plain, artists sometimes face persecution and censorship. When
John Sims was an artist in residence in
Columbia, S.C., he was handcuffed and
detained by police at the gallery that
showcased his own art exhibit. His show “AfroDixia: A Righteous
Confiscation,” was
part of a series of his work that toured
throughout the South. The exhibit featured
“Five Flags: A Group Hanging,” which
displayed reimagined confederate flags
hanging from nooses on gallows.
Our brilliant Black minds leave us
way too soon. And even when they leave us
physically and become ancestors, Black
artists leave with us an eternal legacy to
stir our emotions, lift us up and prompt us
to take action. John Sims, may you rest in
power.
This
commentary
is also posted on The Grio
