‘The Signing’ by Renee Cox: Visualizing a United America Today while Highlighting the History of Black Folk in the USA

Pia Diamandis -

In the wake of the 2016 United States presidential election, which saw the rise of President Donald Trump and his divisive ‘MAGA’ campaign, acclaimed Jamaican-American photographer Renee Cox felt compelled to create her own version of Howard Chandler’s Christy’s historical painting, Signing of the Constitution. The original painting, which hangs in the US Capitol to this day, has been an icon that lives in the minds of the American people as it depicts their Founding Fathers signing the US constitution in the Independence Hall on September 17, 1787. 

The Signing by Renee Cox. Image courtesy of Renee Cox’s website.

Cox’s reinvention of the painting showed the white men in the original painting replaced with black men and women. By doing so, Renee Cox uses the painting to paint a picture which better suits American society today—a nation of races and backgrounds that Donald Trump’s presidency threatens. At the same time, Cox also uses her photograph as a reminder of how far the nation has come, “When the Constitution was written it did not include blacks as human beings - they were considered property.” Hence, the artwork exposes the faults behind the divisive rhetoric ‘Make America Great Again.’ This is why The Signing by Renee Cox is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Reduced Inequalities.

Signing of the Constitution by Howard Chandler Christy. Image courtesy of Architect of the Capitol.

Before becoming a visual artist, Cox had spent her professional life as a fashion photographer, and still in an interview with Widewalls she admits that, “Once a fashion photographer always a fashion photographer at heart.” In The Signing this is apparent in the high fashion garments that the figures are dressed in. Some of the models are also dressed in heritage African garb and accessories, as a nod to Afrocentric periods, a celebration of their individual heritage which has become an inseparable part of American history.

Photograph of Renee Cox at her exhibition Revolution/Revelation at the Newport Art Museum. Image courtesy of @reneecoxstudio/Instagram.

Renee Cox’s The Signing reimagines Howard Chandler Christy’s iconic painting, Signing of the Constitution, to reflect a more inclusive vision of America today. By replacing the white Founding Fathers with men and women of colour, Cox critiques the exclusionary nature of the original document, which denied basic human rights to African Americans. Thus her artwork serves as a bold statement against the divisive rhetoric of Donald Trump's campaign to return to a previous iteration of America, all while highlighting the progress that has been made toward a more united and diverse society. 

Find out more about The Signing and other pieces by Renee Cox on her website www.reneecox.org or Instagram @reneecoxstudio.