Imperfect Pixels

a new series of work by Travis Sheridan

There is a known truth in the Black community: Being perfect isn’t enough to avoid getting killed.

Once the life of a member of the Black community is taken, the person’s imperfections surface and the reality of who that person was becomes distorted. Someone who was once a student, a son, a mother, a minister, an activist, a friend, a jogger, suddenly becomes recategorized as a thug or a threat. Their life becomes an inverted version of their often short-lived reality. 

This work consists of images that only become clear to the viewer when they stop and interact with it. It allows the person to pause and, even in a crowded space, have a personal moment with each piece. These are portraits of lost potential and you are asked to take time to really look at them. 

There is no perfect person, and this series does not pretend there is. But there is a difference between a flawed person and a broken system. Personal flaws should not be a death sentence. Perfect performances when interacting with the police should not be required just to reduce the probability of death. The media, as it plasters the images of lost brothers and sisters across all its channels, should not be allowed to distort the truth about the victims. 

With Imperfect Pixels, Travis is asking us to slow down and remember those the Black community has lost -- often at the hands of police brutality. Once they are lost, they no longer have a future. The Black community is losing its future leaders, doctors, politicians, fathers, friends, advocates, and teachers.