Howard R. Mallory is an artist who is well known in Chicago for decades for his dynamic pottery. His work has been exhibited and sold in galleries and at art events throughout the city. I got to know him in 1967 at the Parkway Community Center, which was a bustling recreational and social spot on the South Side. It housed one of the most active, important repertory theaters (ETA) in Chicago at that time in a setting where robust pick up basketball games, art exhibitions, and creative workshops often were all going on simultaneously. Down in the basement was a large, vigorous ceramic studio where I met Howard aiding some beginners in making hand built pots. This uneventful meeting later gained greater meaning when he was one of the five artists featured in the “5inSearchofaBlackAesthetic” exhibition in the studio/gallery of Wadsworth and Jae Jarrell. That exhibit in the WJ Studio and Gallery in May 1969, featured Howard’s pottery, Barbara Jones’ prints, Jeff Donaldson’s paintings, and paintings by Elliott Hunter and Wadsworth. It was only fitting that the opening of that show featured the music of members of the AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Music), whose genesis in the same neighborhood (their home was also in the Parkway Community Center) was contemporaneous with that of AFRICOBRA. Howard became a member of AFRICOBRA in 1972. Many years had passed between that first meeting and my most recent visit to his home, that's been known as Karamu Gallery. It’s always a feast of riches to visit a friend like him who is never lacking for genuine conversation about his work, his family, the times we live in, what lies beyond the horizon, and whatever thoughts drift through the atmosphere. About his age, he says he always gives it as the next plateau, which is 80. That makes him 78. He no longer produces pottery, so seeing his newest work at this time was eagerly anticipated. I followed my friend out the back door, watching him negotiate his familiar path around furniture, down the steps, along the concrete walkway that was like braille, and toward his Shrine. He pointed out the collard greens in his garden, indicating that he produced enough to give some to neighbors on the block. I gazed nostalgically at the one time, much modified garage, turned studio, now Shrine, recalling a time when it was bustling with Howard’s pottery activities. Before we went inside he led me out into the alley to show me the walls of the wooden building which were decked out with a number of his intriguing celebratory creations that paid homage to Black historical figures. Here was quintessential mimesis, the indigenous “mimesis at midpoint” that some AFRICOBRA artists struggled with over the years, and that has always been a cornerstone of traditional African art and Original art of indigenous cultures around the World. As we retreated from the hot sun into the cool Shrine, I asked Howard, though I felt the answer, how he was able to deal with the possibility of theft or vandalism of such exposed treasures. “Well,” he sighed “I haven’t had any problems." And we left it like that. Obviously, Howard is well respected by his neighbors, and the work is theirs to share. So, what if an appendage disappeared from one of his pieces? He simply replaced it with something else. The duality of attachment/detachment may be a little deep to comprehend in our material culture, but it mitigates any pain that loss might bring. My eyes scanned the interior of the shrine as we sat, and I could feel the heart, soul, and inner vision that went into Howard’s new creations. As Howard sat pensively and we both talked in streams of consciousness of the past and about the future, I gazed at the numerous compositions of wood, metal, glass, stone, string, mirrors, plastic, and cloth with their iconic preciseness, directness and mystical qualities. Eyes and teeth made of broken glass glittered and gleamed in the auburn and indigo shadows beckoning the late September afternoon Sun. Here was the exemplary “far seeing room” of a man whom time has blessed with good visionary hands that once shaped lumps of earth into pottery, but which now construct fascinating personages out of whatever materials he can find to transform. The creative, magical touch of an artist reaching deeply into a reservoir of textures and thought forms to recreate a vision of humanity is, and will remain, etched in my memory, and are here for all to see. Gerald Williams March 21 2009 The works of Howard Mallory are presented for your enjoyment with his gracious consent. |
