The Negro Leagues of Baseball
When I first began this journey down the path of Negro League Baseball advocate, I actually had no idea I was headed down that road. Growing up in the Los Angeles area, the Dodgers are the team I follow. Lucky me, thats most likely where the seed planted came from, due to Jackie Robinson being a Dodger, and he broke the Major League Baseball color barrier in that uniform. Dodgers Roy Campanella and Don Newcombe also being Negro League players that crossed over and had great success at the big league level made them household names, so Im blessed to have at least that as a foundation to the Negro Leagues.
As a younger baseball fan and collector of baseball cards, I was made aware of some of the other greats like Monte Irvin and Turkey Stearnes among others. The circumstances as to why these men were not allowed to play in the MLB never sat well with me, even as a youth. I have always been creative, but it wasn't until my mid thirties that I really started to research and investigate more into the history of the teams and players and start to make art with this new, to me, information. Visually I can tell stories better than writing them, as has always been the case for me. Josh Gibson was the first artwork I had made, then Jackie, Satchel and then I thought to myself, "Where is this going?" It wasn't until about the sixth painting I realized without knowing, I had painted 2 pitchers, 2 catchers and two 2nd basemen, each , with a red or blue background. It was then that I came to the conclusion of making two Allstar teams, one team with a red background, and one with a blue background. Once I was done wit the 18 portraits a year and a half later that I realized every guy I picked was from a different era, covering all of the Negro League history ending with Hank Aaron who was the last player ever chosen by an MLB team before the Negro Leagues shut business down for good due to all its stars crossing over.
I made a friend at the Museum of Tolerance a few years prior to 2011 and we decided to exhibit these 18 mixed media artworks there. The exhibition stayed for 6 months and knowing bus loads of children everyday were dropped off there to tour the museum and have the docent talk to them about my work. That alone is priceless and the many great things that have happened to and regarding my artwork since this show have been extraordinary and validating as an artist.
There are many stories to expose and uncover regarding the Negro Leagues of Baseball, and its rewarding to know that I carry one of the torches to bring light to this amazing period in Black, Civil Rights and American history.
The Hammer
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Hank Aaron was the all-time MLB home run leader until 2007 when Barry Bonds eventually became the career home run leader. This illustration is from my Negro League Baseball coloring book. As a young player in the Negro Baseball Leagues, Hank Aaron was a "cross-handed" power hitter, meaning he held his hands top hand on the bottom, or the wrong way... The Hammer" was the very last Negro Baseball Leagues chosen to play in the MLB. Female baseball player Toni Stone replaced Hank on the ABC Clowns. A few years after the MLB plucked all of its good players, The Negro Leagues of Baseball folded as a league. "The Hammer" was a fixture around the MLB but mostly in Atlanta as "The Brave" around town. He loved the fans, the fans love him and he was its greatest ambassador for decades after his last game. Sadly, he made his last trip around the bases and passed on, January 21st, 2021. He will ALWAYS be remembered. To many he still considered Major League Baseballs All-Time Home Run Champion. |