“Water grieves in the six shades of death”

"Black mothers wail a virgin rainfall as eulogies bleed like hand-me-down fabric from Christ; black bodies stain the pavement in crimson red." - Morel Doucet 

Water grieves in the six shades of death, is a series of mixed media drawings that examine the realities of climate-gentrification, migration, and displacement within South Florida's Black diaspora. The title is rooted in magical realism, juxtaposing water as a body containing historical trauma, cultural dissonance, and active memory. 

Within the past two years, I've been exploring Little Haiti, Overtown, Allapattah, and Liberty City to gather various flora and fauna from these communities to create ecological drawings in the forms of abstract portraiture of the residents that live in these districts. When I explore each neighborhood, I see they are in some way, sacred to the people who live there. The land harbors their cultural history, legacies, and shared nostalgia. 

Within the last decade, developers have been aggressively gentrifying these neighborhoods for elevation and land value; which causes the displacement due to rising rents and property tax. As a result, these communities are changing rapidly. I want to explore the theme of climate-gentrification in South Florida. In the event these Black bodies cease to exist with the threat of climate-gentrification, the land we inhabit still holds our cultural memories and genetics. Tropical foliage and front yard gardens are like gatekeepers of time - they anchor the dreams and hopes of the people. 

Water Grieves: Black Mothers Wail a Virgin Rainfall

Runtime: 46 seconds
Production Date: June - December 2018
Audio Album: Black Boy Gold
Narration: Poet Jasmine Mans, Track One: "Let It Be"

Black Madonna and Child by Morel Doucet