Songbook For Black Constellations, For Trio

Artist Corey De’Juan Sherrard Jr. presents data on Black demographics and institutions in the U.S. through a unique pairing of painting and music. Sherrard takes data on Black life in the U.S. — the cities with the highest black populations by number (Masses) and percentage (Meccas), the cities home to historic Negro League Baseball teams, and the cities with Historically Black Colleges and Universities — and plots it onto his map-based paintings.  He then converts the plotted points into musical notes to compose the data into musical scores. In doing so, Sherrard creates an audio-visual language that connects art to real-world social conditions.

Exhibition Dates: July – October 2023

Constellation for Black Masses in Amerikkka

25 cities in America with the largest Black populations by number
72 x 48 inches
House paint, acrylic, and chalk on wood panel

Constellation for Black Meccas in Amerikkka[?]

25 cities in America with the largest Black populations by percentage
72 x 48 inches
House paint, acrylic, and chalk on wood panel

Theme I, for Negro League Baseball

16 Negro League Baseball teams. Plots that are circled represent cities with more than one team.
72 x 72 inches
House paint, acrylic, and chalk on wood panel

Black Education 42/50, pg. 1

25 HBCUs, part 1. Plots that are circled represent cities with more than one school. 42 refers to the number of cities and 50 refers to the number of HBCUs.
72 x 48 inches
House paint, acrylic, and chalk on wood panel

Black Education 42/50, pg. 2

25 HBCUs, part 2. Plots that are circled represent cities with more than one school. 42 refers to the number of cities and 50 refers to the number of HBCUs.
72 x 48 inches
House paint, acrylic, and chalk on wood panel