Blog Post 4

     As I look at all of my fellow classmates work it is clear to see some similarities shown throughout our work.  

      It seems to me, that Europeans came into contact with Africans through trade, exploration,  and the slave trade. For example, Cecilia talked about how trade was used to connect Europe and Africa in terms of red coral import. Other examples of trade connecting Europe and Africa include the paintings depicting materials that were native to the colonies like certain types of fabrics.  Explorers also got in contact with Africa through the merchant trade to bring new goods to Europe. In terms of the slave trade, Europeans imported slaves and came into contact with the Africans that way. 

      

     One of the main similarities I saw between all of my classmates and my projects was the relation between Africans and status symbols. In the Duchess of Portsmouth, the little black girl in the painting was a status symbol. She was given to the Duchess as a present like a pair of shoes, not a person. Many elite patrons had servants or slaves that showed their wealth and status. 

     Another connection between Africans and status symbols is the use of coral. Coral is a status symbol as well. And blackamoor, was used to promote the owner's wealth as well. Blackamoor was usually seen in the homes of the wealthy and elite to show how cultured they were. All of these items are used by the Europeans to promote their status while suppressing the African people. 

     One of the next themes I saw was the theme of superiority over the African people. All the Africans pictured in blackamoor or paintings were all shown to be serving the Europeans. For example in the blackamoor piece Negress with a Basket shows a black woman gesturing to figuratively serve the owner of the piece sugar out of the sugar bowl. The clock mantle piece also uses Africans as tools to help the Europeans live. Also, the Duchess of Portsmouth shows a little African girl helping a Duchess get dressed. 

     After all of these blog posts it seems clear to me that it is impossible to easily understand the relationship between Europe and Africa. It is convoluted and confusing. However, it does seem clear to me that the Africans were clearly exploited by the Europeans and their culture was usurped and used as decor for European homes. This project was over all very insightful and interesting and I really learned a lot about the relation between countries in the eighteenth and nineteenth century.