artist statement

“My hope is that this exhibition will move people toward continued volunteerism and humanitarianism
in Mississippi or wherever it may be needed, in our own backyards or beyond.”

H.C. Porter, Artist

“BACKYARDS AND BEYOND: Mississippians and Their Stories” is an exhibition made up of lives, hopes, dreams and loss.

Hurricane Katrina changed forever the coastline of my home state and the lives of its people. As a social realist painter it is a natural extension of my work to document these challenges and in some small way tell the story of those affected.

Encouraged by collectors across the country I spent much of the first 12 months post-Katrina on the Mississippi Gulf Coast documenting the amazing strength, resiliency, and hope of Mississippians as they reclaim their lives following this incalculable disaster.

The resulting works including powerful images of the Human Spirit paired with audio recordings of those represented in the paintings will keep the awareness of our state’s needs alive.

Additionally, the opportunity to show the rest of this country and the world who we are as Mississippians is monumental. Although my work has previously focused on Mississippi’s African-American communities, this project includes images of all Mississippians, both Black and White, Vietnamese and Hispanic. The unity, diversity, resiliency, and love for our state, recorded throughout the work and a documentary video is certain to transform the often held, outdated stereotype of this great state forever.

Amazingly, my time on the Coast has revealed that many people throughout the United States have no idea that Mississippi was affected by Hurricane Katrina, much less that our entire Coastline has been annihilated. People’s lives have been altered for generations. This is not the Great Depression or The Dust Bowl Days, but it is Hurricane Katrina, a part of our nation’s history that unfortunately landed head strong into every single Coastal community of Mississippi.

The time spent with my neighbors has shown me that a very significant outlet for their healing is the telling of their story. Part of their restoration and hope comes from knowing that they are being heard.

I am simply a vessel through which the story is being conveyed. It is about the faces and emotions and words of those I am documenting. This Exhibition will be their stories …our story … Backyards and Beyond … a story that must be told for a very long time.”

H.C. Porter, Artist