Context & Credits
+4
1919 Sunset and 2020 Sunrise
Street Murals by Erik Burke / OU, as seen in 424 Monroe St, Gary, IN
Unavailable
Item Details
These two vibrant murals are a stark contrast from the dilapidated abandoned buildings of downtown Gary. The pairing speak to BLM movement and as a tribute to the Red Summer of 1919 where a black 17-year old named Eugene Williams, floating on a homemade raft in Lake Michigan drifted beyond an imaginary racial line leading to a white man throwing rocks at him; ultimately drowning him. The Black side of the beach confronted the man and involved the police but they wouldn’t make an arrest. Instead they arrested a Black man. Fights, shots, riots, and arson exploded across Chicago leading to weeks of violence and thousands of people left homeless. Other riots were also happening across the U.S. better known as the Red Summer.
This work was painted for PaintGary and highlights local-rapper Freddie Gibbs alongside a youtube timeline paused at 19:19 of a 20:20 minute long track. The mural visualizes collective black trauma at a seminal moment.
This work was painted for PaintGary and highlights local-rapper Freddie Gibbs alongside a youtube timeline paused at 19:19 of a 20:20 minute long track. The mural visualizes collective black trauma at a seminal moment.
