Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
A charcoal drawing whose title honors The Star of Deep Beginnings: The Genesis of African Science and Technology by Dr. Charles S. Finch III, a landmark work tracing the African origins of mathematics, astronomy, engineering, and metallurgy — with particular attention to the Dogon of Mali, whose cosmology anticipated concepts now central to modern physics. The piece depicts two Dogon figures in ceremonial dress, their forms drawn from Dogon masking and sculptural traditions. The abstract radiating lines and circular convergence point framing the figures are taken directly from a James Webb Space Telescope image of Sirius A and B — the same binary star system whose "invisible" companion, Sirius B, the Dogon are said to have described in their oral cosmology centuries before Western astronomers confirmed its existence. By fusing this contemporary telescopic imagery with traditional Dogon iconography, the piece collapses the distance between ancient African knowledge systems and modern astrophysics, visually asserting a continuity Finch's scholarship argues for directly. Rendered in richly layered charcoal with dramatic contrasts of light and shadow, the work stands as both homage and argument.
Original artwork, hand-drawn in charcoal on paper.
A charcoal drawing whose title honors The Star of Deep Beginnings: The Genesis of African Science and Technology by Dr. Charles S. Finch III, a landmark work tracing the African origins of mathematics, astronomy, engineering, and metallurgy — with particular attention to the Dogon of Mali, whose cosmology anticipated concepts now central to modern physics. The piece depicts two Dogon figures in ceremonial dress, their forms drawn from Dogon masking and sculptural traditions. The abstract radiating lines and circular convergence point framing the figures are taken directly from a James Webb Space Telescope image of Sirius A and B — the same binary star system whose "invisible" companion, Sirius B, the Dogon are said to have described in their oral cosmology centuries before Western astronomers confirmed its existence. By fusing this contemporary telescopic imagery with traditional Dogon iconography, the piece collapses the distance between ancient African knowledge systems and modern astrophysics, visually asserting a continuity Finch's scholarship argues for directly. Rendered in richly layered charcoal with dramatic contrasts of light and shadow, the work stands as both homage and argument.
Original artwork, hand-drawn in charcoal on paper.