1001 Black Men–#297

I always see the most interesting people at the cafe. As a Harry Potter fanatic, this guy most certainly turned my head. He was both tall and wide and, with his bushy black beard, he looked just like a Black Hagrid. I really wanted approach and ask him to say, “alrigh’ Harry,” but I thought he might not really appreciate the suggestion that he looked like a fictional half-giant.

Ajuan Mance

1001 Black Men–#296

Happy Valentines Day to all of my readers and friends! I was all set to post this drawing, having completed it last night, when I remembered that today was February 14th. Somehow I had disconnected the card shopping and dinner reservations and all of the other things that were on my agenda for today from my art making process last night.

Why is that a problem? Well, all of the men in this piece were dressed in shades of yellow and greenish yellow. Not very Valentines-y, I know. So, I went back to the drawing board, so to speak, recolored the drawing in shades of pink, and voila! Here it is.

So please do enjoy this portrait of three 1970s-era lovermen, dressed in the style of Superfly and so many of the other Black male style icons of the Pre-Carter seventies.

Hope you’re having a great V-Day, even if you don’t choose to celebrate it at all.

Ajuan Mance

1001 Black Men–#295

Ah! Berkeley’s Fourth Street Shops business district–an array of specialty retail establishments ranging from high-end home furnishings to charming and quirky food, clothing, makeup and stationary boutiques. Fourth Street draws shoppers from all over Alameda County…but not a lot of Black folks. I always see a few, but it’s not like Piedmont Avenue in Oakland, or even that stretch of College that runs through Rockridge. I’m not necessarily saying that this means anything negative about the Fourth Street area. It’s simply the way things are at the moment…which brings me to the subject of this drawing. Given the relative dearth of Black folks in this stretch of an otherwise significantly Black region of South Berkeley, when I do see a brother in that area, he stays on my mind.

Ajuan Mance

1001 Black Men–#293

I work near a wedding chapel, and I always enjoying seeing the couples and their wedding parties waiting for or celebrating after their ceremonies. This drawing depicts a recent groom who was waiting next to the limousine while the wedding photographer took pictures of his wife, who was posing on the steps of the chapel. In this moment, he looked a little uncomfortable in his suit, which was adorned with a white flower (probably in the lapel, but I’ve placed it in the breast pocket). His suit was not as ill-fitting as it looks in this drawing, but I rendered it that way in order to accentuate the look of discomfort.

Ajuan Mance

1001 Black Men–#290

I saw this man chatting with another guy outside of World Ground Cafe on MacArthur Blvd. I hope he didn’t think I was rude, but I couldn’t stop staring at him. He really reminded me of one of my uncles. I have five uncles on my dad’s side. Maybe one day I’ll do a drawing of each of them, as well as all of my male first cousins (of whom there are many). For now, this will have to do. Who knows? If he or his people are from South Carolina, we just might be related.

Ajuan Mance

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