Review: “Heard” by Tramaine Townsend at Daisha Board Gallery, Dallas

Texas is many things. It is a transitory region in and of itself, surrounded by the borders of four states within the U.S. and four northern Mexican states. It is the cultures of all of these places, as well as the distinct geographical and historical regions within Texas, that make it, along with the histories and stories of its residents, exceptionally unique and diverse. Ours is a state of the swampy coast; of deep green fields; of short trees filling in areas between estuaries and creeks; of cities with highways that ribbon and stretch all directions and into the deep blue horizon; and of dry, mountainous deserts defined by gradients of brown and the smell of creosote after a flash flood. 

Ours is a state of many syncretic cultures, some more recognized than others, some reflecting stories both past and present, and some hidden beneath layers of history either often forgotten or intentionally denied. 

Heard by Tramaine Townsend, on view at Daisha Board Gallery in Dallas, is an homage to the many layers of the history and contemporary presence of one such culture: Black cowboys. Without a doubt, Texas is widely known for its ranching history, which goes hand in hand with the presence of cowboys who helped settle the state. They participated in the ranching economy locally and nationally, and became as pervasive and prolific as the state’s western culture, both in stereotype and reality. The cowboy is as Texan as the state itself — as Texan as the Dallas Pegasus, Gulf Oil, South Texas Grapefruit, the fast moving current of the Rio Grande, and the rolling peaks of the Hill Country; the figure, the stereotype, is as much a part of the many stories of our state as anything. However, what’s missing from this heroic, oft filmed and novelized narrative is the specific culture of Black cowboys, which is as ubiquitous today as it was years ago. 

Townsend’s use of the word “Heard” as a title is a double entendre, referencing both the act of herding cattle and the act of hearing. Here, the artist proposes that Black cowboy culture be heard and recognized, offering a photographic glimpse into how Black people have and continue to shape narratives about the West. 

It should not come as any surprise that the influence and history of people of color within Texas’ culture has been historically omitted or disregarded. Indeed, we seem to be proficient at erasing the stories of people of color, which is why Heard should be at the top of everyone’s list of exhibitions to visit. It is a small but profound show that deserves as much space and attention it can get, both for its content and subject matter, and because Townsend is a beautiful storyteller. He manages to portray these stories expanded as narratives, which are told in the show through photographs that uses the same visual language and finesse he brings to his films. The images have movement in their stillness. Technicolor sunsets frame shots of cowboys riding through parking lots; perfectly timed shots between actions show the nuance of a horse lifting its leg between steps, or a rider leaning into a trot.

Khalil’s Got Next (2020), the image on the title wall of the exhibition, shows a Black cowboy riding a tan horse. He looks down, his straw hat tipped ever so elegantly, his torso leaning back slightly as he pulls the reins taught. The horse stands at an ever so slight diagonal, not quite bisecting the frame, but coyly catching the sun against the muscles of his face and his glistening mane. But what makes the scene particularly memorable is that it takes place on what looks to be a neighborhood basketball court, fenced in from the surrounding field, with homes visible in the perimeter beyond. The horse stands firmly atop gray asphalt, its shadows intersecting with the white lines defining the court underneath his belly.

This is the magic Townsend has captured. His images show not just the idiosyncratic culture of the cowboy as myth, but stories of Black cowboys captured in contemporary settings, surrounded by cars in parking lots, dirt roads, cattle arenas. His figures come as they are — they’re wearing backwards baseball caps, sneakers, cowboy boots, track pants (this cowboy flashes a smile and an irreverent middle finger), Nike t-shirts, gold chains, doo rags, and one sports a red button down with pearl snaps and white tassels.

Townsend shows us a culture that exists, has always existed, and continues to evolve amidst the dramatic backdrop of a big and changing Texas sky. A deep respect of cowboy culture as a fundamental part of Texas is visceral in the images, but more importantly, the photographs give story and voice to the culture of Black cowboys that has been traditionally underrepresented. Townsend shows us that the Black cowboy is and always will be as Texas as Texas itself. Personally, I want to see more of it. 

 

Heard by Tramaine Townsend is on view at Daisha Board Gallery in Dallas through July 29, 2023.