Pittsburgh artist designed Google Doodle honoring Martin Luther King Jr. - TribLIVE

tapanggane.blogspot.com

About an hour ago

Monday’s Google Doodle was designed to show the duality of history and current events, pointing out similarities and differences in the civil rights movement of the 1960s and the one that is taking place today.

That’s according to the doodle’s creator. She is artist Noa Denmon, 25, a Pittsburgh native who lives in Wilkinsburg.

“It’s talking about the ways we’re similar and different from the civil rights movement, and now,” Denmon said. “I think that was the first thing that I thought about when we got the project. That was kind of an instant moment in my brain as a Black artist, as a Black woman.”

The Google Doodle is a temporary alteration of the Google logo on its home page, celebrating holidays, significant people and other whims of the team behind it. Denmon said Google approached her a few weeks ago to design one for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. She immediately wanted to emphasize the relationship between the past and present, she said, drawing inspiration from Black Lives Matter protests last summer and her own experiences as a Black woman and artist.

“It’s been a pretty hot, politically intense year for Black people, in general,” she said. “I wanted to use this as an opportunity to talk about that and think about how we’re going through similar moments in our politics, right now.”

After toying with a couple different ideas, Denmon created a split-view: One side of the design is black and white, showing a crowd of people gathered to watch King speak; the other, full of rich red and orange colors, shows a group of people collaborating on a mural depicting some of the civil rights events King was involved in. The mural includes a bus representing the Freedom Riders, an organized protest against segregated bus terminals; and a bridge similar to that of Selma, Ala., where King marched in an effort to register Black voters in 1965.

Denmon wanted to emphasize the multigenerational movements, including people of all ages. On the modern, colorful side, she wanted to make sure people were spaced far apart and outside while they worked on the mural to reflect the reality of covid-19 social distancing.

The bulk of her work is very colorful and human-based. She said she loves to draw people interacting and to include ornate details such as leaves and flowers and patterns. She draws inspiration from fashion and jewelry and retro art. While her style is certainly reflected in the Google Doodle, Denmon said the assignment was a “transitional piece” for her as she seeks to create more work that speaks to her perspective and the experiences of Black populations in the U.S.

She has designed art for a few successful children’s books, but Denmon said the Google Doodle probably will be her most widely viewed project to date.

The doodle is certainly a “good career moment.” But beyond that, she said it was an honor to design the doodle for this particular day.

“I was just really jazzed, really excited I got to be a part of this particular day,” she said. “It brings another level to my artwork that I’ve been looking for.”

“I wanted to be making work that is important to the moment,” she said. “There are a lot of sad moments that are going on right now. … I hope that people see it as kind of a bright, exciting, motivational piece.”

Denmon grew up in Greenfield and graduated in 2014 from Pittsburgh CAPA, the creative and performing arts school. She left Pittsburgh to attend college at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. After graduating with a BFA in 2018, she stayed in Philadelphia for a while, but her love for Pittsburgh eventually brought her back.

Denmon is excited to keep exploring Black perspectives and stories in her artwork. She is in the process of designing a couple of new children’s books, and she is hopeful the Google Doodle will open doors for more opportunities to design art relating to Black experiences.

Teghan Simonton is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Teghan at 724-226-4680, tsimonton@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Categories: Local | Pittsburgh | Top Stories | Wilkinsburg