The River That Flows Through Time 2006

Curator: Looking at Varnette Honeywood's mixed-media piece, "The River That Flows Through Time" from 2006, I’m immediately drawn to the recurring motif of women. What's your first impression? Editor: A sisterhood seems evident here. The work pulses with gentle, resilient strength. I’m struck by the varying skin tones and dress – how identities seem both united and celebrated through the aesthetic of time flowing. Curator: Honeywood utilized watercolor and other media to layer representations of Black women across time and socio-economic spheres, highlighting generational shifts. It is naive art yet with serious underpinnings in craft. Editor: Absolutely, there's a deliberate intersectional narrative being woven. These aren't just portraits; they're emblems of progress, representing the journey and evolution of Black women in society, framed as if emerging from a watery past, perhaps gesturing towards diasporic consciousness? Curator: Right, there's an undeniable current that literally and figuratively threads throughout the piece. By focusing on material culture--the fabrics, the regalia of success--the artist is making a commentary on how identity is literally constructed. The composition is both organic, like the flow of watercolor, and carefully articulated through repeated symbols. Editor: Indeed. Considering that the title itself, “The River That Flows Through Time”, situates identity within the context of temporality, there is the question of intergenerational inheritance here. The figures, though in different professional roles and stages, appear intertwined and facing toward similar future horizons. How interesting that Honeywood made that link explicit with a flowing stream of water between those women to remind us the continuum is present, even today. Curator: Ultimately, this composition serves not only as a chronicle but a celebration. It demonstrates how labor and artistry intersect to create objects imbued with deeper social meaning. It causes us to confront how Black feminine identity has been both shaped and continues to shape, the aesthetic landscape. Editor: I agree. Honeywood's artwork prompts vital dialogue around history, identity, and progress, resonating long after the viewing experience ends, suggesting that this ‘river’ still shapes our social landscape.