Richmond-based illustrator Shannon Wright illustrated today’s Google Doodle, a rendering of Carter G. Woodson, an African-American historian who is credited with creating what has become Black History Month — and who Wright hadn’t heard of until an art director at Google called her with the assignment.
“I felt very let down that I had never heard of this guy beforehand and the fact that he is credited as the father of black history and I didn’t even know who he was,” Wright says.
In a monthlong process of researching and creating the illustration, Wright says she was fascinated by the Virginia native’s work. As a journalist, author and historian, he dedicated his life to the field of African-American History, lobbying for the creation of what is now Black History Month. Born in the Buckingham County community of New Canton in 1875, he was the second black person to receive a doctorate from Harvard. Woodson worked to prioritize African-American history through his organization, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.
Richmond-based illustrator Shannon Wright (Photo by Sarah Schultz-Taylor)
The illustration, featured on the company’s main search page, depicts Woodson at his desk, alongside a cascade of papers that reflect all of the research and writing he did, Wright says. She noted Woodson’s diligence in recording parts of African-American history that were missing.
Wright, a 2016 VCU graduate, has done work for a number of clients, including The Guardian, the New York Times, NPR and now, Google.
Google averages about 3.5 billion searches per day — Wright said she’s contributed to about 10 of those today and was struck at seeing her work on the Google homepage.
“It’s really surreal. I’m very honored and happy to have done it, also to have another person from history who I’ve been able to learn about,” Wright says. “I’ve been smiling all day.”
