Mark Bradford
Mark Bradford
Mark Bradfordis an American artist living and working in Los Angeles...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionArtist
CountryUnited States of America
best car happen negative plates police pull run
The police pull up in back of my car and run my plates - they don't see you as you are; they see you through a racialized negative gaze. I think the best thing is not to internalize it too much, or it'll make you crazy because you know it's going to happen again.
ensure happen
It's very time-consuming. We want to ensure it's done correctly. It's nothing that's going to happen overnight.
becoming crisis happens national north notice race time war
In North America, what happens often is that they put race before nationhood. Everyone here is Hispanic-American, Chinese-American, African-American. But really, we're just North Americans of all these different descents. The only time I notice North Americans becoming national is when a war happens or a crisis happens.
anybody artist mom
My mom was an orphan, and there was never anybody to tell her what she could or couldn't do. At the core, she's probably an artist - an artist and a feminist.
brought free mom
My mom was a free spirit, and she brought me up to be a free spirit.
We have to tighten some things up. We need to be a little more patient.
belong choose expected figured people room run society suddenly visit
I never expected to run into a room and suddenly I belonged. I figured people who live on the fringes of society, they're more free. They can choose to visit anywhere; they don't belong to anywhere. It's like being without a nation, in a way.
became believe opened picked reason stand
When I was thirteen, I was in a supermarket with my mother, and for no reason at all, I picked up a science-fiction book at the checkout stand and started reading it. I couldn't believe I was doing that, actually reading a book. And, man, it opened up a whole new thing. Reading became the sparkplug of my imagination.
decide society telling work
At the end of the day, I'm an artist. I may make work and decide to do something political, but it will come out of an artist's position. It won't come out of society telling me I have to. If I do, it's because I choose, as an artist, to do it.
underlying
Everything I do has an underlying political question.
defensive everybody great jessica played sure
Bergh played a great defensive game, she's all over the place. Jessica makes sure everybody is in the right place.
either trust
You either have to find a way to be really creative materially, or you better have a trust fund. And, last I checked, I didn't have a trust fund.
time wonder
About the time I was 7, I got really into black-exploitation films, so I made my own Wonder Woman, but I made her black.
felt notice people pride starting taking
There were a lot of people congratulating us on the win, and that really felt great. A lot of people are starting to take notice and are taking pride in our team.