In a new series of works currently on view at The Fridge gallery in Southeast DC, Phillips Collection Museum Assistant Joel Ulmer displays a series of oil paintings exploring race and class based on his experience growing up in Washington. His work, much of which reflects the internal tension he felt being raised in a low-income neighborhood in Southeast while attending high school in an affluent neighborhood across town, contrasts Rockwellian style imagery with an intimate portrayal of the African American experience. Several of the 21 works on view are inspired by Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series in the Phillips’s collection.
Image Copyright Joel Ulmer 2018
Jacob Lawrence, The Migration Series, Panel no. 11: Food had doubled in price because of the war., 1940-41, Casein tempera on hardboard, 18 x 12 in. The Phillips Collection, Acquired 1942
Image Copyright Joel Ulmer 2018
Jacob Lawrence, Panel no. 57: The female workers were the last to arrive north, 1940–41, Casein tempera on hardboard, 18 x 12 in. The Phillips Collection, Acquired 1942
You can see Ulmer’s (aka @JoelVincii) work at The Fridge gallery through Wednesday, October 28. Visit the Phillips to see Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series.