“Not Always Invited to Dinner” by Raymond Saunders was created in 1995. It is a fairly political piece, referencing Malcolm X, Jackie Robinson, and other African American media and figures. I had the pleasure to examine this work among others in Raymond Saunders’ exhibit at the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh, his hometown. Upon hearing the title, “Not Always Invited to Dinner” and then looking at the work, I was immediately reminded of the poem “I Too” by Langston Hughes. In that poem the narrator speaks about how they are ‘never invited to eat at the table with the company’, just like the title of Saunders’ piece. In the poem it states, “Nobody’ll dare/ Say to me,/ ‘Eat in the kitchen’/ Then./ Besides,/ They’ll see how beautiful I am,/ And be ashamed—,” (lines 11-17). This quote portrays how it feels to stand up for yourself and be confident in your skin, even when others are trying to put you down and hide your full potential away. This relates to the piece because not only does it represent the neglect of African Americans, but it also celebrates the group and their accomplishments.
For example, on the right edge of the door that Saunders had used as his canvas, you can see part of a newspaper insert with a black girl doll with straight hair that says, “Straight Expectations” in the middle of the page. This can represent how African Americans were (and still are in some ways) encouraged to shrink themselves and neglect their culture to be able to conform to white standards. Even though the artist represents this feeling of compressing his culture, he still makes sure that African Americans are also shown in a positive light in this work. As mentioned earlier, he includes prominent African American leaders, Malcolm X and Jackie Robinson in his work. If these powerful names don’t ring a bell to you -which I’d be surprised if they did not- Malcolm was a Civil Rights activist and Jackie Robinson was the first black American man to play in Major League Baseball. Both of these figures helped pave the way for many more African Americans who came after them and they also both inspired many people with their courage. The influence that they had is clearly shown throughout the artist’s works, especially Malcoms’ influence.
What I have noticed the most across Saunders’ works in the gallery is the repetition he uses. First, he starts on a bigger canvas; usually a door or just a once white canvas painted black. This larger foundation sets the scene for the smaller details that he adds to his work. If you compare all of the works shown in the exhibit, you can see that he frequently depicts Malcom X, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr (often thought to be represented with a crown), hearts, scribbles, crossing things out, religious symbols and figures, and Chinese characters. These things coming up again and again in his art are kind of like his signature images. They help show his character through his art and give him a distinct voice.