"No Woman No Cry" (1998) was painted as a tribute to Steven Lawrence, killed in a racist attack and dying as a consequence. The image shows a grieving woman, crying tears representing individual murders of black people. The customery plinths of dung represent the shitty side of life, and "deal" that black people often experience in the world. It's his comment on how black people are perceived and as a consequence are treated by individuals and systems.
I think the image is delicately rendered. The contrasting colours are both vibrant and full of life - the yellows and reds, contrasting with the delicate patterning of black pearls creating a mesh to see the image of the woman through. It looks like a container and may be making a comment on the imprisonment of the person for the value she can have to the world. I think its a comment on slavery as well as the individual experience of the murder of a womans son.
http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/ofili-no-woman-no-cry-t07502
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