Did the Bear Sit Under a Tree? 1969

Benny Andrews made this painting, "Did the Bear Sit Under a Tree?" with gestural marks and a palette of whites, blues, reds and browns. I imagine him standing there, shifting, building the image through trial and error, intuition guiding his brush. Looking at it, I sympathize with Andrews; I imagine him thinking about the fractured state of the American dream, the struggle for equality. The paint isn't too thick, not too thin, just enough to carry the weight of the message. See how the raised fist clenches, a universal sign of solidarity and resistance? The gesture communicates a raw, unfiltered feeling. The American flag appears next to the figure of the man as if to show the reality of life in America for people of color. Andrews is in conversation with other painters of his time, engaging in a dialogue of ideas and emotions. Painting is an embodied expression; it embraces ambiguity, allowing for multiple interpretations and resisting any fixed meaning.