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Counter-racism, hyper-awareness of difference of separateness arising within the black artist himself, is just as destructive to his work, his life – as the threat of white prejudice coming at him from outside.” “Art projects beyond race and color, beyond America. Saunders wrote those words in 1967, and they still resound today.
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“Certainly the American black artist is in a unique position to express certain aspects of the current American scene, both negative and positive, but if he restricts himself to these alone, he may risk becoming a mere cipher, a walking protest, a politically prescribed stereotype, negating his own mystery and allowing himself to be shuffled off into an arid overall mystique.” A 2003 exhibition of African-American Art at the Corcoran Gallery featuring Saunders work was named for the influential pamphlet, which argued that African-American artists should not be tethered to the notion of a race-based approach of making art. His self-published 1967 pamphlet Black is a Color is still prominently discussed in college classrooms. While his work as an artist is at the forefront, Saunders also changed perceptions within the art world with his words. ’57) influence on American art since his graduation from PAFA has been profound. It whistles and shoots steam at the top of every hour and announces quarter hours with the Westminster Quarters a common clock chime melody that’s also used by London’s “Big Ben”.Raymond Saunders’ (Cert. While the Gastown clock does partially rely on steam to wind its mechanisms, it also has an electric motor. In total he has created 150 customized clocks, which are now on display as public artworks worldwide. Since his first steam clock in Gastown, Saunders has since built six different public steam clocks for clients such as the city of Otaru, Japan, and the Indiana State Museum. It sparked a whole public steam clock trend The world’s first steam clock is often credited to John Inshaw, who supposedly built the clock to attract customers to his tavern in Birmingham, UK during the mid-19 th century.Ĥ. At the time, it was considered either the first or second steam-powered clock ever built. The Gastown steam clock was made by Canadian clockmaker Raymond Saunders. It was built by Canadian clockmaker Raymond Saunders While it may not seem all that impressive to Vancouverites, the Gastown steam clock is one of the only functioning steam-powered clocks in the world.ģ. In an effort to attract more people to Gastown, local storeowners and private donors raised $58,000 to pay for the clock. Built in 1977, the steam clock marked the completion of the city’s revitalization project. It started with a freeway, or lack thereofįollowing protests of Mayor Tom Campbell’s plans to run a freeway through Gastown, Chinatown and Strathcona, the city instead decided to invest money into revitalizing Gastown and refurbishing the neighbourhood’s historic buildings. This week we take on Vancouver’s infamous tourist attraction, the Gastown Steam Clock.ġ. Each week we’ll uncover some unusual and (hopefully) interesting facts about the city.