
In African-American culture, hair has always been an important aspect in determining the value of the female body. In this era, an African-American female is judged by her hair quality, length and abundance (or lack thereof). The examination of an African-American woman’s hair, (whether it is hers or has been purchased) can create assumptions for people who have not taken the time to get to know her like: her living conditions, education level, self-worth, and even her sexuality. All this “information” can be inferred, just by observing someone’s hair. When written on paper or read aloud, the notion of a person being judged solely on their hair sounds completely bogus and absurd. However, this has been an on-going practice in the Black community for years, and may never stop. In Keturah Ariel’s painting of a teenage girl amidst her large, curly afro, she shows the perfect example of how much a black female’s hair means to her, and how much of an influence it has on the African-American community.

In the painting, the first thing that grabs attention is her wild, voluminous, curly hair However, her positioning in the painting is just as important. The African-American girl is sitting with her legs tucked underneath her arms. She holds them close to her body, as if she is afraid of something. She holds her legs in this fashion with the intention to hide her body, self-consciously accentuating her hair. She is in fact, scared. She hides behind this hair, because she has never known anything else; much like myself. Ever since she was a child, her hair has always been the center of attention, which was never her doing. People have constantly forced it upon her with their questions, comments and shallow concerns: “Honey, your hair is so beautiful, don’t you ever cut those precious curls.” “How do you make your curls do that?” “Were you born with that, is it yours?” The famous “What are you mixed with?” is the most offensive line. As if cutting her hair would mean losing her soul along with it; as if an African-American girl cannot have “good hair” without being mixed. It always comes off as an insult, because she is mixed with nothing, she is just Black, and Black is who she is. With so much hair, she is so noticeable, yet always finds a way to hide behind her lion’s mane.

The bigger, the better. The child sits with her hair so long that she sits on it. It’s so big and puffy that it almost engulfs her. It creates an almost eerie shadow around the girl. Over the past years, her hair has been such a large part of her life that it seems to have completely taken over her. It has a mind of its own, thinking for itself and ultimately controlling her. She listens to it. It tells her what to wear, how to feel, who to and not to associate with. Sometimes it may be too big or too frizzy, other times not big enough. In time, she becomes obligated to shoulder the feelings of her hair. When her hair is too messy, and out of place, she will out of place and frazzled. She will feel the automatic need to dress that way as well; messy hair calls for a messy ensemble. If her hair is too big, she may feel as if she is too big as well. As she walks through crowds of people, she feels them stare at her hair and whisper comments like “How is her hair so big?” She struggles with these questions— ones she will never be able to clearly answer herself. After all, who is she without her hair?

The color scheme makes use of only cool colors symbolizing a melancholy recollection of past experiences. In the painting, she maintains a slight smirk on her face, a far cry from a happy smile. Her face isn’t completely straight, but she also shows no teeth either. There shows a slight curvature in her lips that give away a smile. As more of a smirk, it gives the viewer the idea that the girl isn’t very happy. She is not blatantly upset or angry in, but she does not look necessarily happy either. It seems forced...like she is afraid, or has something she needs to get off her chest, but pushes it away, using her smile as a shield. Around her there are splats of blue that are accompanied by a warm magenta color. Splashes of blue in the painting represent the pain she hides inside. The blue color also gives an impression that the girl is not happy about something. Perhaps, her hair or the way her hair makes her feel. It gives the painting a dreary feeling, and even takes away from the amount of hair a bit. The other splashes of magenta give the painting a sense of warmness and happiness, contrasting against the blue color. The color creates a warmer feeling, as it is much more vibrant, while not being too bright. It makes sure that to give off a sense of contentment, rather than excitement. The girl is also wears a pair of shorts the same magenta color, her lips painted almost the exact same color. Dressing her in the color helps contrast against part of the blue hanging over her like a dark cloud. It almost looks as if the Blue is surrounding only her hair and the purple acts as a means of light to negate the distress of her hair. She sits afraid in a pool of magenta and lavender, and seems to find content within it.

She is not her hair. The small, timid, afraid girl is much more than just her hair. She doesn’t realize it yet, but she is everything but her hair. Deep inside, she has so much more to offer, yet she still sits afraid. She lets her hair do the talking for her. It is extremely overwhelming for her; the size, the shape, the texture, and it shows. On the inside, she is this fearless, courageous, and unstoppable girl. However, she lets the volume of her hair overtake the volume of her entire life. Her beautiful personality hides behind those luxurious curls. The longer she continues to hold on to her mane, the more she fades away, and it becomes harder to free herself from her curly cage.
