Bryan Collier Tells of Art, History and Their Importance for Children

The House of Art on Lewis Avenue hosted a discussion with painter and illustrator Bryan Collier last Saturday. Collier read from "Dave the Potter," a children's book written by Laban Carrick Hill and illustrated by Collier.

"Picture books are the new history books," he said. "They [exist] so that young people can see what history and struggle is, up-close."

"Dave the Potter" is a true story about an artist (potter), poet and a slave, born in 1801, in Edgeville, South Carolina. Reading was outlawed for slaves. But Dave's slave master, Harry Drake, was an austere and deeply religious man who wanted his slaves to study the Bible so he taught some of them to read.

Dave later lost a leg in a train accident and was then sold to another plantation owner, who was a potter. Because of his one leg, Dave was unable to work in the field so he worked in the pottery barn and in no time became skillful at pottery.

There still is considerable mystery surrounding Dave the Potter, but thanks to the former slave's unique ability to read and write, he left a spotty, yet intriguing account of his life as a slave scrawled on the shoulders and sides of the pottery he created, some of which is around still today.

After reading from the book, Collier talked about the value of art to him and the story's namesake Dave. 

"Dave's pots were made into art objects because it's a testimony of survival," Collier said. "This was his way of dreaming. I appreciate that as an artist, because this is what art does. And his artistry made him dream beyond his circumstances."

Collier started out as a painter after he graduated from Pratt University. He began focusing on a different medium, children's book illustration, after a realization during a trip to the bookstore: "I was in Barnes & Noble in the children's section and I didn't see any books with people of color," he said. He decided that he wanted to fill that void and was rejected by publishing houses for seven years until one called him back.

"I don't know if it was confidence or arrogance, but it was a labor of love so it didn't matter to me," he said. "It's about how to tell a story and how to enjoy yourself. If you build your own world, you don't have to be timid about how you tell it."

Collier has been a painter for 28 years, working in watercolors as well as collage to give his work texture. He uses symbolism to allude to what the characters are doing. Several of the books Collier has illustrated were available at the gallery, including "Our Children Can Soar," by Michelle Cook.

"Our Children Can Soar" is a poetry and picture, a collaboration between several artists and writers. The book takes young readers through the cumulative story of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement introducing icons such as Jesse Owens and Rosa Parks, as well as lesser-known figures in the struggle for equality. The book won the NAACP Image Award this year. Collier provided the portrait of Thurgood Marshall in the book as well as the artwork for the cover.

Gallery Director and Collier's friend, Richard Beavers, also stressed the importance of storytelling and reading at a young age, adding that he has created an extensive library for his own children. He said he was especially drawn to Collier's work in "Dave the Potter" because of the history it holds.

"It's such a powerful story that I had never heard, and it was resurrected in this book," Beavers said. "I wanted Bryan to share the history, especially because I'm a big history buff."

Along with Collier's work, the paintings and collages of Monique Luck, Anton and Leroy Campbell are featured in the gallery.  Beavers said that he chooses to display contemporary artists that he finds are unique and whose work resonates with those who will come to see it.

"I put a lot of thought behind the exhibitions," he said. "I choose powerful pieces that I think will enrich the community."