Name/Title
"Resolute" (2021)Entry/Object ID
2021.2091Tags
On ViewDescription
Wesley Clark, an artist from Washington, D.C., created "Resolute" by merging the vintage with the contemporary, envisioning both the future of Palestine and the enduring spirit of the resistance. In 2021, this work was featured in "Freedom is One", an exhibition exploring themes of solidarity between Black Americans and Palestinians.
Clark explains, “I invent the object’s life and history. The materials are selected as a means to tell the story… material clues support a fictitious narrative prompting the viewer to work through their own invented narrative.” In “Resolute”, Clark urges us to seek multiple perspectives and uncover truth within our shared global memory—one that resists the violence of erasure and challenges colonialist narratives.
Constructed from plywood, paint, and industrial metals, Clark’s artwork depicts a map of historic Palestine, overlaid with the colors of the Palestinian flag—red, black, white, and green. The red central triangle of the flag intersects with the occupied Gaza Strip, embedded with rusted nails, drawing attention to the people of Gaza and the violence they have endured—and continue to face. This piece remains profoundly relevant today as we confront the colonialist narrative perpetuated online and in the media, which seeks to rewrite history and erase indigenous culture, heritage, and life from the land.
If an object can be invented and interpreted, the artist asks us—what else can be? And how can we intervene before it is too late?
Authored by Curator Wafa Ghnaim
15x52 inches, Plywood, spray paint, latex, metal, nails, twineArtwork Details
Medium
plywood, spray paint, latex, metal, nails, twineContext
Created in Hyattsville, Maryland by African-American visual artist Wesley Clark (b. 1979 in Washington, DC)Collection
Freedom Is OneGeneral Notes
Note
Loaned 2021-2025, then donated by Wesley Clark in 2025