Gallery 90 celebrates Juneteenth

Rani Carson knows things about art and painting, but most important to her is what there is to know about the human condition.  Her large-scale narrative paintings reveal a cycle of life within the Rastafarian culture in Jamaica, where she resides half the year.

Using casein and gouache to achieve a matte effect on earth-toned prepared boards, she celebrates children and families, often in the natural environment and often reminding one of Mary Cassatt’s intimate depictions of 19th-century middle-class families, comfortable in their homes and gardens.

She is especially respectful of farmers who till the soil and have a direct connection to the earth and its cycles.  Through these intimate relationships, she explores the universal through the personal, offering a glimpse into the full range of human experience, including death, grief and renewal.  Her objective is to achieve peace through understanding, a transformation through spiritual enlightenment.

To that end, she explores life within Rastafarian culture—one which may appear foreign at first glance to many viewers but who soon see similarities to themselves.

Rastafarian culture was brought to Jamaica by Ethiopian natives.  Ethiopia was the only African nation never colonized by Europeans or influenced by their culture.  It is, then, a pure cultural link to the past, retaining its traditions despite the diaspora which led to their arrival in the New World.

Yet, there are cross-cultural references in their beliefs—for example, in their distinctive treatment of hair.  Through its length and braiding, they maintain a link to the Old Testament biblical story of Samson, who was said to derive his strength and power from his hair.

These cross-cultural references are present in her approach to painting as well.  A graduate of both Barnard and Brooklyn Colleges, she has studied painting with Herman Rose and has lived in Paris, traveling widely throughout Europe.

The iconography and composition of her mural are reminiscent of the altarpieces of the great Italian 14th-century Renaissance painter Giotto, while the vibrant hues and color relationships in her portraits and village scenes seem to draw inspiration from Gauguin’s glorious tropical paradise.  The warmth of her palette underscores the warmth of the relationships among her subjects.

Rani Carson at Gallery 90 through July 7.  Gallery open noon- 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.