Original artwork by Jeff Musser
2023
Oil on canvas tarp
91 × 67 × 0.25 inches
Musser’s work examines race as a constructed identity through history painting and the experiences of his own family. His interest began with childhood observations of the unequal treatment of white classmates and darker-skinned friends in suburban Sacramento.
We Did Not Exist Before 1681 investigates the historical emergence of whiteness as a social category. Within his broader practice, Musser considers how racial identities shift across generations, what is lost through those changes, and how they shape belonging, power, and family history.
Original artwork by Jeff Musser
2023
Oil on canvas tarp
91 × 67 × 0.25 inches
Musser’s work examines race as a constructed identity through history painting and the experiences of his own family. His interest began with childhood observations of the unequal treatment of white classmates and darker-skinned friends in suburban Sacramento.
We Did Not Exist Before 1681 investigates the historical emergence of whiteness as a social category. Within his broader practice, Musser considers how racial identities shift across generations, what is lost through those changes, and how they shape belonging, power, and family history.
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