Passing by the window of Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Fruitvale Ave., Oakland, CA
Why draw this brotha? It’s always interesting to see someone in real life who has the kind of body you usually only see on televised sports.
Ajuan Mance
Category Archives: Oakland
1001 Black Men #774
Waiting in line at the bank, across the street from Peet’s on Fruitvale.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #772
Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Fruitvale Ave., Oakland, CA.
Why draw this brotha? That fly purple shirt with that super fly polka dot tie.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #771
Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Fruitvale, Ave., Oakland, CA.
Why draw this brotha? Because he seemed so young to look so tired.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #770
Waiting in line at Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Fruitvale Ave., Oakland, CA.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #769
Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Fruitvale, Ave., Oakland, CA.
Why draw this brother? Because his haircut reminded me of Dr. Jackson, a science instructor at my high school and the only African American person on the entire faculty. At that time, my hair was straightened to within inches of its life, but I admired Dr. Jackson’s afro. At a school in at African Americans made up of only one percent of the student body, his sculpted coif felt outrageous, audacious, and unapologetic, and I loved it!
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #768
I’m baaaaack.
It’s been an eventful last three weeks or so, and I haven’t had much time to add new posts. Even so, I’ve continued to create new drawings, and I have a bunch of new pieces to share.
Most of these new drawings were done while I was sitting by the window at Peet’s Coffee and Tea, on Fruitvale Avenue. Even though it’s been open for quite some time, I only started going there a couple months ago.
The staff is quite friendly, and the location is convenient to the local grocery store. My favorite place to sit is at the bar along the side window. It’s a great place for people watching, which also means it’s a perfect location for making drawings for this website. The crowd along this stretch of Fruitvale is wonderfully diverse. The brothers in and around this establishment are a true cross-section of Oakland men of African descent, from suits to saggers and beyond; and at a time when I’m feeling a little overwhelmed with stories of Black lives ended prematurely, I take great pleasure and hope from the sheer number and diversity of Black men I see going about their business in and outside of this coffee shop.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #748
High Street Post Office, Oakland, CA.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #745
Multitasking on the corner of Foothill and 42nd.
This guy had a baby in his stroller, headphones on his ears, and an iPhone in his hand.
Ajuan Mance
1001 Black Men #744
I was at the giant Safeway on Broadway doing some late night grocery shopping when I passed this brother doing some late night diaper shopping. If a 2 AM diaper run isn’t kind of a metaphor for what it means to be the dad of young kids, I don’t know what is.
Ajuan Mance