Projects > The Chameleon (2007)

Michael Dixon self-portrait
Oil and Graphite on canvas
96x72
2007
Michael Dixon self-portrait
Oil and Graphite on canvas
40x50
2007
Michael Dixon self-portrait
Oil and Graphite on canvas
36x36
2007
Michael Dixon self-portrait
Oil and Graphite on canvas
40x50
2007
Michael Dixon self-portrait
Oil and Graphite on canvas
50X40
2007
Michael Dixon self-portrait
Oil and Graphite on canvas
96x72
2007

As a light skinned bi-racial black person, I liken myself to a racial chameleon. I sometimes "pass" in majority white spaces, and I am privy to the unfiltered comments of white people. While I am mostly accepted in a majority black space, I have been reminded that I am not "black" enough. How my racial identity is perceived by others is often dictated by how my hair looks. My hair changes often from Afro to bald and back again. These paintings are about the my hair.