(NewsNation Now) — Artist Fred Noland’s latest project is a series of posters celebrating Black history. They’re displayed at bus stops all around the San Francisco Bay Area, giving people a chance to learn about key figures in Black history while they wait.
Noland joined “NewsNation Prime” Saturday to talk about the project.
When asked how he came up with the people featured, he described searching online and going down many unexpected paths to find the figures he ultimately decided to use. Some of them are well known and some not, but all played an important part in Black history in the Bay Area.
Asked about the month in which his works will be featured, Noland said, “To me, Black History Month is a reminder that we’ve been here since the start and how much we’ve contributed to the growth and building of this country, often literally with our bare hands.”
His posters are in the style of a graphic novel. He says, “It’s a really great shorthand. Everybody loves comics, at least I hope they do because I’m a cartoonist, and when I draw these things as something that approaches caricature without being outwardly funny, it’s very reader-friendly and coaxes people in. Then when they come in to take a closer look, there’s the history in front of them.”
San Francisco is one of the most diverse areas in the nation, and Noland can see his poster idea resonating with many other cultural groups. He said there are opportunities for many different groups to think about their histories and where they’re headed.
Noland’s art will be on display throughout February all around the Bay Area. If you’d like to see the posters online, you can visit the San Francisco Arts Commission Flickr gallery here.