JOHN T. RIDDLE, JR. (1933 - 2002) The History of the Trumpet.
Oil and collage on panel, 1995. 656x889 mm; 25¾x35 inches. Signed, titled, dated '1-27-95" and inscribed "Fats, Handy, D 22, Clifford, Lee Morgan, Miles and D. Smith Accomp" in ink, verso.
The History of the Trumpet pays homage to jazz trumpeters and their enduring legacy on the genre. Realized in the work are musicians Miles Davis, Lee Morgan, Clifford Brown, Clark Terry, W.C. Handy, and Fats Waller.
Artist, educator and art administrator, John T. Riddle, Jr. was born and educated in Los Angeles. Greatly inspired by Noah Purifoy, Riddle's abstract approach was a direct way of addressing his community. His work after 1965 centered on assemblage and collage - using material from remains found after the Watts riots. He taught art at Los Angeles High School and Beverly Hills High School before moving to Atlanta in 1974, where he taught at Spelman College. Riddle returned to Los Angeles in 1999 to the position of Program Manager of Visual Arts for the California African American Museum. Several of his assemblage sculptures were featured in the traveling museum exhibition Now Dig This! Art & Black Los Angeles 1960-1980.
