It was a grey and overcast day when our class ventured out to visit the Black Holocaust Memorial on Anderson Lane, located on the edge of Savannah's Victorian District. This monument is one of the best examples of "outsider art" imaginable. In the two years I have lived in Savannah I have probably driven by this monument hundreds of times. I've only noticed it once but admittedly never gave it more than a glance. Now I wish that I had investigated it much sooner.  

             The artist is a Savannah local named James Kimble. Kimble is a kind and soft-spoken man. You have to lean in closely when he speaks because you will undoubtedly miss something important if you aren't listening closely. He begins by talking about his labor of love. Of course our first question is how long it has taken him to construct his enormous monument. Kimble has been working on "Black Holocaust" since 2002! His work is a counter monument to the well-known and controversial slave monument located on River Street on the Savannah riverfront. 

             

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

             

                                                       

​

              Kimble's main problem with the monument is how the slaves are depicted. It is an African-American family of four dressed in modern attire with loose chains around their feet being the only nod toward slavery. Kimble felt that choosing a white sculptor to create the monument was a poor choice because it is not part of their heritage. The artist could never empathize with that heritage and that pain. It would be like him trying to sculpt George Washington, he could attempt to but it would never turn out quite right. Kimble feels a deep and personal connection with his work. 

              We asked him if he received many visitors to his memorial. He said that he did. A few remarked that they were not even aware that it was there. Or that they had seen it and just never bothered to come look at it. I thought about myself in that instance. Kimble said that many people are too afraid to come and look at it. I felt a burning feeling of guilt as he said this. Maybe that is why I never bothered to come see it. Kimble said that folks see his black panther shirt and they think he means trouble. Perhaps they also just want to forget that horrible things like slavery were once a reality right here. 

               My favorite part of the monument was the section that Kimble had created with the neighborhood children in mind. He voiced concerns about the children in the area observing the wrong behavior going on around them. He said that childhood is precious and that they should hang on to their innocence as long as they can. The back section had a built-in Little Tykes playground complete with a slide. There was also Teddy Ruxpin, a giant M&M, and an adorable penguin and a puppy dog with a bone watching over them. 

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​