When hearing the opening chords of Marvin Gaye’s “I Want You,” one immediately imagines the powerful, dynamic, and sensual figures dancing on the album cover, painted by Ernie Barnes. “The Sugar Shack,” his most famous artwork which adorns this record, was painted based on a memory – a significant moment that only song and movement can produce – of a young Ernie Barnes, one fateful night when he snuck into a dance party at the old Durham armory where he grew up. The evening had such a profound impact that it inspired him to create this iconic work, which after being added to the credits of the TV show “Good Times”, became an iconic image for viewers around the world.

In the work of Ernie Barnes, music, dance, and community have always been celebrated, even in the humblest and unlikeliest of settings. His scenes have always embraced dynamic movement, with dance and jazz as an urgent and intrinsic part of the human experience. Through elongated limbs, closed eyes, and exaggerated movements, the scenes found in Barnes’ work are as close as one can get to seeing how it feels to experience music. The contrast between Barnes’s more tender, solo moments and high-spirited, dynamic multifigure work speaks to the artist’s dexterity and expansive relationship to music.

Studying the many works that make up the estate of Ernie Barnes, music truly felt like a throughline in his life and art. Barnes said many times that music and dance were always a huge part of his identity. From his childhood memories watching his father play the piano after a long day’s work to his industry friends and patrons including Lou Adler and Bill Withers, music was a constant in his life. Ernie Barnes “Where Music and Soul Live” is an immersive exhibition celebrating Ernie’s love of sound and movement, and this lasting musical legacy thanks to the musicians who featured his artwork on so many incredible albums.

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