November 9, 2018
“BALTIMORE”
by Alex Senna
“Hard times in the city In a hard town by the sea Ain’t nowhere to run to There ain’t nothin’ here for free Waiting for a train Drunk lying on the sidewalk Sleeping in the rain And the people hide their faces And they hide their eyes Cause the city’s dyin’ And they don’t know why Oh, Baltimore Ain’t it hard just to live?” —Randy Newman, 1977
A year after Randy Newman penned “Baltimore” it became the title song for Nina Simone’s critically acclaimed album and the anthem of a troubled city unsure how to recover from 1968 unrest that left six dead and 700 injured. Four decades later Brazilian artist Alex Senna remembered Newman’s lyrics with this work overlooking the railroad tracks and Union Ave in the Woodberry neighborhood. Reacting to the song Senna’s three children huddled against the backdrop of black smoke are his consideration of the impact drugs and racism have had on the children of Baltimore. @alexsenna/ @baltimurals/
