Thomas, Mickalene. Tell Me What You’re Thinking. 2016. Chromogenic print on paper. 39 3/4 x 49 1/2 in. (100.97 x 125.73 cm). Museum Purchase, Lloyd O. and Marjorie Strong Coulter Fund. 2018.8
Tell Me What You’re Thinking is a modern photograph by Mickalene Thomas, a contemporary multi-media artist who focuses on highlighting identity and representation of black women. Thomas herself is a queer black artist producing a body of work that intentionally places black women in spaces where previously they have been absent, empowering them in a genre where they have been historically exploited. She draws inspiration from the canon of European art in much of her work to highlight misogynistic tropes and turn them on their heads, updating female subjects to modern women.
Tell Me What You’re Thinking portrays a black woman reclining on a bed, surrounded by a multitude of loud, clashing patterns, looking the viewer directly in the eyes. Thomas is highly interested in fashion, and her choice of patterns are wild and distracting from the woman, as if to say that this woman is not reclining for the viewer’s pleasure and as such she will not be so easily digestible. The woman, though reclining, is sitting straight, her shoulders square to the viewer and head held tall. Her hair is styled in an afro and the table is adorned with tokens of Black culture, which is another way that Thomas is reversing the erasure of this culture and reintroducing it into the art historical narrative.
Sources:
“Mickalene Thomas: Origin of the Universe.” Brooklyn Museum: Mickalene Thomas: Origin of the Universe, 2013, www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/mickalene_thomas/.
“Mickalene Thomas.” Mickalene Thomas – 119 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy, www.artsy.net/artist/mickalene-thomas.