Artist Statement

“American Elephant” is the depiction of an extinction-level event. The African American male as an endangered species — poached for money, sport and culture, and monetized and diluted for consumption and entertainment.

The landscape symbolizes the ongoing deterioration of the African American community and family, with each generation becoming more divided and separate. The monkeys represent those who are responsible for the cultural appropriation and demonization of African American men in America and complicit in the death of the Black man.

Biography

Michael Coppage has lived and worked in Cincinnati since 2007. Coppage was featured in print and online media for his contributions to Cincinnati’s Black Lives Matter mural — and for receiving hate mail for his controversial and provocative series entitled "American +" where he depicts white Americans as monkeys. He recently had a micro-residency at the Cincinnati Contemporary Art Center entitled “BLACK BOX,” a community impact project aimed at demystifying Black men and creating authentic experiences that replace biased and preconceived notions.

Michael earned a B.F.A. in Sculpture from Memphis College of Art and an M.F.A. in Studio Art from The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Primarily a mixed media artist, he has also spent a number of years painting. He has traveled around the world extensively and worked in a number of private collections. Michael also co-created a nonprofit called PIECES, where he works with adolescent psychiatric patients, students and adults who work with children to create large-scale portraits. To date over 400 images have been completed and exhibited around the country. Follow Michael on Instagram @prosper_jones_ and check out his TEDxUCincinnati talk Everybody is Racist!... and it's okay!