A guy asked me to make a painting for him. A portrait of Nina Simone. He's a younger black man, and began by asking if I knew of her. Yes, I remember listening to her songs on the radio. I was surprised that it wasn't the first time recently that her name was mentioned. I guess she's undergoing something of a revival.
He told me a little about her life. How she fought for civil rights, was hounded and left America because of it, and also how she had a hard time because she was viewed as not pretty enough.
The unfairness she endured made me want to paint her picture. Which I did, and the guy apparently was pleased with it. I was a little ashamed that I hadn't painted her image before since I was a fan of black women artists. Maybe I, too, was prejudiced by these standards of beauty, in particular when it came to women. If I was, then it's a real flaw that needed to be corrected. Nina Simone was a great musician, and it's only right that she's bigger after dying than when she lived.