RANIJAH WRIGHT

artist, VISUAL DESIGNER

“My piece is the embodiment of an ordination, from my perspective. Black people are known to be the most creatively gifted people on this planet. There’s a play on the sun(son) being that we are God’s people. The rays are bordered with the leaves of an olive tree. Olive oil is used within Christian churches to anoint an individual for different spiritual intentions. In this case, it’s as if the sons rays are anointing the people with their gifts (life, glory). On the ground, bordering the people are obsidian stones; a stone created from lava. In order to get the stone, a volcano has to erupt and the lava has to cool rapidly. Obsidian is known to block intense negativity and is used as a protection stone. In some cultures it is sacred. I used this stone as a metaphor of the hardships that black people endure but somehow, we are still expected to shine and radiate. (And do!) In the center of the foreground, there are two individuals that glow a little brighter than the others and also hold an ankh; the symbol of life. It can be said that the male and female are Adam and Eve, God’s first epitome of his light.”

BLACK & ORDAINED

“We are all born with a divine gift, ordained. I believe our journey in life is to find what that gift is and walk in it. Your gift, created for you and only you, might just be what keeps you happy and sane within this wicked world. Walk in your gift, walk in Godspeed.”