Category Archives: Black Men

Ajuan Mance, Art, Black Men, African American, Artist, Black Men, Comic-Con

1001 Black Men #750: The Brothers of Comic-Con, 2014

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I noticed this brother just after we got through the Comic-Con check-in line, at the San Diego Convention Center.

He got my attention because he and I were on the same mission. After Comic-Con check-in, attendees recieve a program, a souvenir book, a lanyard, and the cherished Comic-Con shoulder bag. The thing is, there are several different bag designs. They’re all the same shape and size, but each features one of several different television series or movie cast photos or a drawing of comic book hero.

If you’re a Comic-Con veteran, then you know to hover around the different bag stations until the volunteers start passing out a design you like. This brother got one of the coolest bags of the year, featuring an image from the original live action Batman series.

Alas, I had to settle for a Vampire Diaries bag. For the first time since I started attending the Con, The Big Bang Theory did not produce a souvenir bag. Four Big Bang Theory bags in a row will have to be enough. The irony is that I’ve never even watched Vampire Diaries. The bag will make a great gift for some one who does.

Ajuan Mance

Ajuan Mance, Art, Black Men, African American, Artist, Bearded Men, Beards, Black Men, Oakland

1001 Black Men #743

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We had a hot spell a couple weeks ago. (To be perfectly honest, we’re having a hot spell right now.) In mid July, though, the temperatures rose even higher than they are right now, and brothers all over the Bay Area shucked their shirts in an effort to beat the heat. Driving along Bancroft Avenue (in Oakland) on my way to Zocalo Cafe (in San Leandro), it seemed like there were shirtless men on every corner between Hegenberger and 98th. Oddly, though, they didn’t seem any more comfortable than the guys who were fully clothed. The placebo effective of removing one’s shirt was not working for them at all.

Ajuan Mance

Ajuan Mance, Art, Black Men, African American, Artist, Bearded Men, Black Men, San Francisco

1001 Black Men #742

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I am pleased to say that Thursday’s trip to San Francisco was almost completely unnecessary. I drove over to add some additional adhesive to the art labels for my show at the Writers’ Grotto. I’m pleased to say that all of the labels were still where I placed them, and only a few of them were curling away form the wall. I added some additional tape to those most likely to fall off, and I drove away satisfied with the overall quality of the show.

The trip gave me some peace of mind about my art labeling skills, and it also brought me in contact with a new subject for my series, this guy who I passed on my way back to the car.

Ajuan Mance

Ajuan Mance, Art, Black Men, African American, Artist, Bearded Men, Beards, Black Men, San Francisco

1001 Black Men #741

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I passed this guy a few weeks ago, at the San Francisco Public Library. I’d gone over to pick up the three pieces of art I’d shown as part of The Black Woman is God exhibit, curated by Karen Seneferu. It was the second incarnation of an exhibit that was at the African American Art and Culture Complex last summer. Like me he was heading toward the African American Center at the library and I watched with a little bit of envy as he disappeared into the stacks near the exhibit area. This is the first summer in a long time that I haven’t had the time to truly immerse myself in my research and writing, and the sight of him turning down a row of books made me wistful for summers past, when I could spend uninterrupted weeks in the UCB library.

Ajuan Mance