Playtime For Prince/Black Boy Joy Honoring Prince Estabrook - Art In The Park by Cassandre Charles

Playtime For Prince/ Black Boy Joy Honoring Prince Estabrook by Cassandre Charles

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Location:

42.4487690, -71.2696741

Significance:

"Playtime For Prince/Black Boy Joy Honoring Prince Estabrook" is a gorgeously decorated, recycled door crafted by regional artist Cassandre Charles. The door explores how enslaved children found joy while also honoring Prince Estabrook a Patriot of Color in the American Revolution.

Designation:

Art In The Park

Artist: Cassandre Charles

Artist Statement: 

It was difficult to imagine a child of slavery playing. How could they find joy in one of the most traumatic times for the descendants of Africa? Children are resilient in imagination and play. To depict the black experience in joy needs to be a constant in my work. I am free to create my own image of a hero, whom we have no visual references to copy. I choose to show him as a young boy who chose to fight along with his owner as a young man. I choose to focus on this black boy's joy. Joy used to psychologically prepare him for a life of servitude and war. I imagine he was great friends with African American poet, Phyllis Wheatley, the first black artist/advocate I read about as a child. Both accomplished black Americans, who earned their freedom with weapons of battle and art. Thank you ancestors, for your service to my freedom and my Black Joy. Ase' & Ayibobo. 

On the back of the door: A history and silhouette of black soldier Prince Estabrook.
On the front of the door: Vignettes with restored materials, acrylic paint, exterior paint.

Artist Bio:

Cassandre Charles was born in Boston, MA at Boston City Hospital, in 1971. Her parents migrated from Haiti so her father’s band, Volo Volo, could pursue international opportunities. Both her paternal grandfathers were multi-media artists. One an eccentric free spirit she never met. The other sweet doting grandpa ,who was a too stern disciplinary dad. He gave her Herhey’s kisses on the sly and called her Ti Pingi (Little Twig).

As an Interdisciplinary/Embodiment artist with fiery Haitian artistic blood and revolutionist’s fire, she’s developed a style of story-telling filled with beautiful rage and cryptic symbols, bended text and cultural, ritualistic, embodiment Her obsession with anatomy seeps through all her mediums in a range of displays that drive the intention of supporting social justice and human rights advocacy endeavors. There are streaks of pop-culture and music references confirming her ownership to the label, “mature African-Haitian-American artist”. Her self portraits reflect her social cultural upbringing and educational career at Hampton University, a historically black college in the 90s.

Her choreography shows her physicality and natural understanding of the human body. Her thirst for information and training shows appropriate representation of movements of dances of the world and her true love movement, classical ballet

This summer Cassandre starts as a member of somatic expert Joshua Elbaum’s Somatic Artistry Cohort and the ArtsAssembly Creative Cohort. She will continue as Artist Collaborator with Monkeyhouse and the Boston Dance Alliance Dance & Disabilities Cohort on developing accessible resources for people with visible and invisible disabilities. Her fall residency “works in process” show will take place at Rocco Ricci Studio in Allston MA, where she is Studio Resident Artist.  

Cassandre holds a BA in Speech, Interpersonal & Organizational Communication from Hampton University. She will begin the low residency MFA program at Mass College of Art in the summer of 2022.

 

What is this project?:

Inspired by the En Plein Air exhibition on NYC's High Line, Go Out Doors - Neighbors builds upon and extends The Umbrella Arts Center's summer 2020 installation of artfully upcycled doors originally commissioned for the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail in West Concord's Cultural District. The exhibition intended to encourage a reconnection to nature for communities then emerging from COVID-19 isolation, at-home schooling, and telecommuting. Gorgeously decorated, recycled doors crafted by regional artists became surprising waypoints of delight while traveling bike paths and walking trails. Some emphasize local wildlife and environmental themes; others are fun and whimsical, stressing exercise and companionship. In 2021, Go Out Doors - Neighbors projects have continued to spread, with new art doors installed or planned in Carlisle, Westford, Concord, Arlington, Lexington, Medford, Groton, Minute Man National Historical Park, and eight villages in Newton including Auburndale; Newton Centre; Newton Highlands, Newton Upper Falls, Newtonville, Nonantum, Waban and West Newton.Background, wayfinding, photos, information about the artists, calls for new proposals, and other news will be updated throughout the season at Go Out Doors - Neighbors | The Umbrella Arts Center.