#2 Mask
Sargent Claude Johnson's hammered copper masks retain the strong influence of African art and draw on the ideas of philosopher Alain Locke's concept that mandated black artists use indigenous African art as an aesthetic model. "#2 Mask" is an example of a highly abstracted mask designed in the relative oval shape of a face while maintaining a highly flattened front surface. Linear striations pressed into the surface of the copper run vertically down the front of the face with two areas punctured in proximity of where eyes would be located. The mouth of the mask is turned up on one side, which gives a dynamic expression to the face. While this later mask retains the same beautiful golden brown patina and soft almond shape found in earlier, more realistic representations, "#2 Mask" is a highly stylized interpretation of Johnson’s vision of more traditional African forms.
The Walter O. Evans Collection of African American Art
One of the most important collections of African American visual art dating from the 18th century to the present, the collection includes 62 works from Edward Bannister, Romare Bearden, Elizabeth Catlett, Robert S. Duncanson, Richard Hunt, Jacob Lawrence and others. This collection forms the foundation of a multidisciplinary center for the study, understanding and appreciation of African American art and culture. Items from the collection have previously rotated in the Evans Center Gallery and through unique exhibitions such as the 2012 "Life's Link: A Fred Wilson Installation," and the 2017 travelling exhibition of Jacob Lawrence's work.