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Inspired by the success of revolutions, independence movements, and the rise of black power in America. The deaths of leaders: Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, and Patrick Lumumba; the politicization of black students; and the Watts uprising in 1965 resulted in unprecedented opportunities for radical black arts and politics. Many artists associated with this movement address issues of black identity and black liberation through appropriation, photo-screen printing and collage.
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Brathwaite's Untitled (Nomsa with Africa) (1964-1968) embodies the "Black Is Beautiful" mantra; promotes self-acceptance and racial pride within the Black community. This beautiful piece confronts mainstream white ideals by celebrating natural Black features, especially by embracing the natural Afro hairstyle (a political statement at the time). The subject holding a map of Africa links to the domestic struggle for civil rights within the broader African liberation movements. -
Ringgold's The American People Series #18: The Flag is Bleeding (1967) depicts an American flag dripping with blood; intentionally positioning her three subjects behind the ghastly screen. The white people and Black man link arms (not a scene of peace of reconciliation). The white man, with legs spread and hands on hips (gunslinger). The Black man holds a bloody knife; he looks like he's pledging allegiance to the flag, but blood seeps between his fingers at his heart. "Can we ever be united?" -
Brathwaite's Untitled (Sikolo with Carolee Prince Designs) (1964-1968) displays his wife Sikolo, wearing a regal beaded headpiece and earrings by Carolee Prince. This piece was a celebration of a new African American identity which has risen the rallying cry "Black Is Beautiful." It offers much-needed texture to our understanding of the Black freedom movement of the 1960s; the lasting power of fashion and photography in the development of racial pride and unique beauty and style of Black women. -
Andrews's No More Games (1970) was an icon of social justice activism within the art world, addressing the systemic exclusion and tokenism faced by Black artist in major cultural institutions. This masterful painting highlights the plight of Black artists fighting for the proper representation and visibility in a predominantly white-dominated art sphere; demanding equitable treatment and inclusion. Using his own personal experience growing up in the rural segregated South as a foundation. -
Andrews's Trash (1971) shows three Black men laboriously pull a seemingly endless caravan of representations of societal ills to a dumping ground. Comprised of twelve canvasses, it reveals his frustration with the state of the nation; references to the Ku Klux Klan, patriotism, incarceration, labor, etc. Part of "The Bicentennial Series," (a 6-year series, 1970); proactive prediction of the exclusion of African-American history and culture from the 1976 U.S. bicentennial celebrations. -
Ringgold's Echoes of Harlem (1980) was her first quilt and her final collaborative project with her mother, Willi Posey; a well known tailor in Harlem who makes a number of textile works. The exquisite piece unifies four distinct fabrics, which display a variety of individual expressions. Together, the faces represent the many life stories present in Harlem. In subsequent years, she begun constructing narrative quilts that portray different aspects of African-American life in the United States.