Derrick Adams, "Game Changing"

DERRICK ADAMS
Born in Baltimore, 1970
Currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York

Game Changing (Ace, King, Queen, Jack)
2015
Silkscreen and gold leaf
Edition 4 of 16

Derrick Adams’s Game Changing transforms familiar “face cards” from a standard deck of playing cards into images of black royalty. He remixes the symbolic codes of coats of arms and other medieval heraldry devices that inform card design. Adams also drew inspiration for this series from the modern American artist Romare Bearden (1911–1988), whose epic collages layer geometric forms and jewel-toned hues to explore African American life and history.

Adams similarly constructs his “playing cards” in segments of brilliant color. He screenprints four layers of acrylic inks to their surfaces—black, blue, red, and yellow—and then, while the yellow ink is still wet, he applies 23.5 carat gold leaf. As the ink dries, the gilding abrades slightly, giving texture and individuality to each print. The result is a set of precious objects surprisingly unlike the mass-produced items they recall.

Student Committee Selection 2014–2015
Contemporary Art Purchasing Program