Moe Brooker

Moe Brooker’s 1985 pastel<del>,</del> <em>Shoutin´ </em>calls to mind sound while also creating swatches of color that hover against denser background colors, like a horizon. Brooker’s love for jazz music percolates throughout the rhythm of the sheet, and the scribbles on the upper portion dance, like a jazz singer’s melodies made visible.

"Shoutin’" is a pastel on paper. Pastels usually come in the form of sticks and are made from powdered pigments and a binding agent. 

Pastels

As a child, Brooker used chalk, which is similar in texture and feel to pastel, to draw comic book superheroes like Batman and Captain Marvel on the pavements near his home. 

Chalk

In 1978, Brooker was the first Black artist to win first prize at the Cleveland Museum of Art’s annual May Show for his work "Afternoon Delight II."

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Shoutin'

Moe Brooker

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