<I>Color(ed) Theory: Harold's Chicken Shack </I>
date: label: Date
content: 2014-2016; printed 2020
name: label: Photograph by
content: Amanda Williams, American, born 1974
notes: label: Caption
content: Statement from the artist:
label: Caption
content: “From 2014-2015 Amanda Williams created a contemporary art project called Color(ed) Theory. Amanda covertly and without permission, painted empty houses in and around Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood that were slated for demolition. She developed a unique, culturally coded, monochromatic color palette based on hues found in primarily in consumer products marketed toward Black people along commercial corridors on Chicago’s South Side. The project emphasized how colors have socially constructed associations that are inextricably linked to race and class. The series explored how academic and theoretical definitions of color map across veiled language used in American media/popular culture to describe racially charged city spaces. What color is urban? What color is gentrification? What color is privilege? Williams then photographed each house, calling attention to the architectural details as well as their isolated context.”
label: Description
content: A digital print color photograph of a red painted house sitting in an otherwise empty lot. The house appears on the left side of the image, surrounded by mature trees. A street or driveway runs from in front of the house across to the right side of the image. The house consists of two stories, and is a square shape with four straight sides and a peaked roof. The house's first floor is a few feet below street level and a set of steps runs from the street to the front door of the main floor. The house has a facade of thin, irregular sized brick or stone and has been entirely covered in red paint except for the white trim along the roof and white showing amongst the edges of the stone. There are two open windows on the right side of the house, one on the first level and directly above it on the main level. There is torn paper above the upper window. The empty, white-walled interior can be seen through the empty windows. There is a large area of grass in the foreground of the photograph and in the background of the photograph is a street with several cars. A chain link fence and several buildings are visible on the other side of the street. The sky above is bright blue with several cloud formations.
label: Description
content: On the verso, in graphite is the artist's signature [Amanda Williams] with [COLOR(ED) THEORY: 'HAROLD'S CHICKEN SHACK' 2014-2016. / Edition of 10.].
place: label: Place depicted
content: Englewood, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Advertising
label: Topic
content: Architecture
label: Topic
content: Art
label: Topic
content: Black geographies
label: Topic
content: Communities
label: Topic
content: Design
label: Topic
content: Foodways
label: Topic
content: Housing
label: Topic
content: Photography
label: Topic
content: Race discrimination
label: Topic
content: Urban life
label: Topic
content: Urban planning
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Portfolio/Series
content: Color(ed) Theory Suite, 2014-2016
label: Classification
content: Visual Arts
label: Classification
content: Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design
label: Classification
content: Photographs and Still Images
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, purchased through the American Women's History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2021.36.1
objectType: label: Type
content: digital prints
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: © Amanda Williams
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: ink on photographic paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (sheet): 22 × 30 in. (55.9 × 76.2 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (image): 20 × 28 in. (50.8 × 71.1 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (matted): 30 × 36 in. (76.2 × 91.4 cm)