Carrie Mae Weems

Commemoration plates (like the historical examples at right and left) typically celebrate or satirize the achievements of the powerful and wealthy. In her Commemorating series of ceramic plates, Carrie Mae Weems spotlights the unsung cultural contributions of Black Americans. This example highlights the impact of African American music and foodways on American culture.

Decorative plates such as Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Plate, the Official Royal Wedding Commemorative Plate for Prince William and Catherine Middleton, and inauguration plates for U.S. Presidents traditionally commemorate the rites and rituals of rich and powerful people. Carrie Mae Weems’s twenty-plate series Commemorating was produced by the artist with the American china manufacturer Lenox, which is known for its White House commissions and customized tableware for U.S. Embassies and governors’ mansions. The series uses the classic design of a round, gold-ringed, bone-white dinner plate, but celebrates rather than royalty the achievements of famous, average, familiar, and forgotten people and moments in African-American history. This one reads: “Commemorating Blues, Jazz, Collard Greens & Thelonius Monk,” while subjects of other plates in the series range from Harriet Tubman to the ghettos of Harlem, Watts, and Detroit to “Every Black Man Who Lives to See Twenty-One.”