Millions Below Deck III
78 x 192 in
Acrylic and pastel sticks on canvas
"Ainsley Burrows is one of the great visionary artistic voices of our time. When I first saw his work, I was extremely moved by the elegance, depth and power simultaneously depicted in his images. These images speak truth to power while celebrating the vibrant culture and triumphant spirit of our community. With the persistent ability to find optimism, hope and strength, Ainsley's work reveals stories of values and ways of being that came from Africa and that have transformed the world as we know it for the better. His artistry moves viewers to reflect in remembrance of the past while reaching through the windows of the future.
For me, Ainsley’s art represents the best of what afrofuturism is and should be, and goes well beyond being limited to a category. Take for example the incredibly powerful Maroons series which simultaneously re-educates us about our past and imagines a better, more human future. These works show our heroes and sheroes who persisted, survived and thrived, even in the face of deep seeded systemic racism born out of the European slave trade. While the Maroons and their descendants resisted the most brutal system of forced labor ever devised, Jim Crow segregation or even the current systemic outcomes, have not been allowed to stop or silence our community.
Ainsley’s work reminds all of us that our people are still here and we are the future...colorful, proud and triumphant."
— Hill Harper, Actor and Author