Exhibition Guide

Visual Description

“They Call Me Redbone, but I’d Rather Be Strawberry Shortcake” is a vertical oil painting on canvas, measuring 54 inches by 43 inches, of a young figure standing alone in the center of the composition and gazing outward toward the viewer with their hands in their pockets and head cocked to the left. Their skin tone is rendered in grayscale, and the painting crops their legs below the thighs. The background is a warm, medium pink color, textured with a speckled pattern. The figure wears their hair in a pair of low, wavy pigtails that are tied with white bows covered with a dense, red polka-dot pattern. One pigtail falls behind the figure’s right shoulder. A strand of hair curls towards their forehead and lands above their right eyebrow. Their eyes are a shade of greenish-brown, and their lips are pink and appear as if a layer of lipstick or gloss has been freshly applied. Freckles are faintly visible on their cheeks and nose. The figure wears a bold yellow, sleeveless sundress with a pleated skirt that falls loosely. The bodice of the dress features a pattern of cartoonishly rendered red-and-green strawberries and white flowers and is bordered with a white ruffled trim. A single solid yellow strap with a white hem is visible on their right shoulder, and they hold their hands in their dress pockets.  

 

Artwork Label

With freckles and glossy pink lips, the young girl tilts her head with a mix of questioning and curiosity. The term “redbone” emerged in the American South during the 18th and 19th centuries, used to describe individuals of mixed African, Indigenous, and European descent, particularly in Louisiana and Texas. Over time, it entered Black vernacular as a word
for a light-skinned Black person with red or warm undertones, carrying meanings that shift between affection and insult.

Often called redbone in her youth, Sherald reclaims the term to explore how language defines and distances. By pairing it with the children’s character Strawberry Shortcake, she transforms a label of difference into one of self-possession, inviting reflection on the cultural weight placed on skin color.