
Lakela Brown
Doorknocker Earring Composition with Overlapping Impressions (17 Gold) and 8 Embedded (Medium), 2025
Plaster and acrylic
29 x 22 x 1 1/2 in
73.7 x 55.9 x 3.8 cm
73.7 x 55.9 x 3.8 cm
Copyright The Artist
LaKela Brown’s plaster reliefs fuse ancient techniques with contemporary cultural symbols, transforming everyday adornments into enduring artifacts. In Doorknocker Earring Composition with Overlapping Impressions (17 Gold) and 8 Embedded (Medium),...
LaKela Brown’s plaster reliefs fuse ancient techniques with contemporary cultural symbols, transforming everyday adornments into enduring artifacts. In Doorknocker Earring Composition with Overlapping Impressions (17 Gold) and 8 Embedded (Medium), the iconic hoop earring—long emblematic of Black femininity, resilience, and personal style—becomes both subject and symbol. Some impressions are highlighted in gold leaf, underscoring their material and cultural value while elevating them to near-sacred status. Brown draws from 1990s hip-hop aesthetics and her own lived experience to recast these forms as historical documents, referencing Greco-Roman wall carvings and cuneiform tablets. What might once have been dismissed as decorative or trend-based is here honored with solemnity and permanence. Brown’s work asks: who gets to decide what is preserved, what is displayed, and what is considered worthy of remembrance?