An acrylic painting. In the foreground, in the bottom left corner is the head and upper body of a bald man who’s crying. He’s Black and staring directly at the viewer. In the center, stand three men of varying ages, in uniforms with horizontal black and white stripes. Their ankles are shackled. Two of the men are holding rakes. They’re Black and staring at the viewer too. In the background are three thin, barren trees and a sullen, gray-blue sky with patches of purples. The ground is mostly orange dirt with a bit sprouting grass.
Kevin Cooper, It’s a Generation Thing in America: Past, Present, Future?, acrylic on canvas board, 22” by 28.”

“This piece is about the different generations of black men that have been in prison. Here in San Quentin, you have a father and a son and a grandson, all in prison at the same time. We went from slavery to slavery by another name: prison labor. The little guy in the front, he’s wondering: Is this what’s in store for me?”