Last summer, artist Amy Sherald and correspondent Anderson Cooper concluded a tour of Sherald’s retrospective at the Whitney Museum in New York City with a focus on her work “Ecclesia (The Meeting of Inheritance and Horizons).” This triptych features three large paintings of Black individuals in vibrant clothing, each positioned in a watchtower against a bright blue sky. Sherald explained that the paintings evoke a sense of mystery and spirituality, as she herself is unsure of what the figures are looking toward on the horizon. Inspired by both medieval triptychs and filmmaker Wes Anderson’s unique visual style, Sherald’s work required her to adapt to painting on a larger scale, using scaffolding and larger brushes. The creation of “Ecclesia” took six months and represents a significant milestone in her career, marking the culmination of her exhibition and hinting at future directions for her art.
QUESTION: How might the sense of mystery and open-ended interpretation in art like Amy Sherald’s “Ecclesia” influence the way we view and understand our own futures?
Amy Sherald shows “Ecclesia” to Anderson Cooper
