Revolutionary (Angela Davis)
Brooklyn Museum photograph
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The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.
Language of action (“resist,” “revolution,” and “I have given my life to the struggle”) and of appreciation (“Black is beautiful”) make up the face, body, and background in this portrait of activist and scholar Angela Davis. These words encapsulate the ethos of the AfriCOBRA (African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists) movement, to which the artist, Wadsworth Jarrell, belonged. The group believed in “Black, positive, direct statements . . . in bright vivid singing cool-air colors.”
This image is part of Jarrell’s series depicting figures who connected Black Americans’ struggles to a global push for self-determination in the face of neocolonial control. Davis is shown as a powerful trailblazer who calls others to join in her fight for equality.
Object Label
Wadsworth Jarrell’s Revolutionary (Angela Davis) is one of the most recognized paintings associated with the Black Arts Movement, a cultural manifestation of the Black Power Movement. Artists of this movement sought to create uplifting images that called upon Black people to harness their collective power. The power of communal action is here expressed through a chromatic swirl of individual colors that coalesce into a unified image of the radical activist and intellectual Angela Davis. Davis’s militant clothing—complete with bullet cartridges—was modeled after the Revolutionary Suit designed by artist Jae Jarrell, Wadsworth’s wife. An icon of Black Power, Davis continues to lead the prison abolition movement today.
Caption
Wadsworth A. Jarrell American, born 1929. Revolutionary (Angela Davis), 1971. Acrylic and mixed media on canvas, 64 x 51 in. (162.6 x 129.5 cm) frame: 65 3/4 × 52 5/8 × 2 5/8 in. (167 × 133.7 × 6.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of R.M. Atwater, Anna Wolfrom Dove, Alice Fiebiger, Joseph Fiebiger, Belle Campbell Harriss, and Emma L. Hyde, by exchange, Designated Purchase Fund, Mary Smith Dorward Fund, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, and Carll H. de Silver Fund, 2012.80.18. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2012.80.18_PS9.jpg)
Tags
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Artist
Title
Revolutionary (Angela Davis)
Date
1971
Medium
Acrylic and mixed media on canvas
Classification
Dimensions
64 x 51 in. (162.6 x 129.5 cm) frame: 65 3/4 × 52 5/8 × 2 5/8 in. (167 × 133.7 × 6.7 cm)
Signatures
Signed LR
Inscriptions
Note attached to canvas of 2012.80.18, lower center, recto: “This is a replica of a revolutionary suit designed by Jae Jarrell in early 1969 for Africobra. 1. This suit is designed to reflect the present struggle of black people in the U.S.A. When Chuck jumps on and bastardize it as he does everything else we do, I want you to know he stole it from black giants - Africobra. Everytime one of our sisters wear one of Chucks stolen designs, they are helping to advertise Africobra. This suit is not for hunkies, strickly for black people in the present revolution, with a show of force for liberation”.
Credit Line
Gift of R.M. Atwater, Anna Wolfrom Dove, Alice Fiebiger, Joseph Fiebiger, Belle Campbell Harriss, and Emma L. Hyde, by exchange, Designated Purchase Fund, Mary Smith Dorward Fund, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, and Carll H. de Silver Fund
Accession Number
2012.80.18
Rights
© artist or artist's estate
The Brooklyn Museum holds a non-exclusive license to reproduce images of this work of art from the rights holder named here. The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org. If you wish to contact the rights holder for this work, please email copyright@brooklynmuseum.org and we will assist if we can.
Frequent Art Questions
What is happening here?
That painting depicts Angela Davis, a scholar and activist who was in the midst of fighting for civil rights at the time this was painted. She is shown wearing the a replica of the Revolutionary Suit designed by Jarrell's wife and fellow artist Jae Jarrell. "Revolutionary (Angela Davis)" encapsulates Jarrell's and AfriCOBRA's tenets of positive role models, text, and bright colors. She's surrounded by quotes from her public speaking and Black Power slogans.In 1968, Wadsworth Jarrell co-founded COBRA (Coalition of Black Revolutionary Artists) with Jae Jarrell and artists Barbara Jones-Hogu, Jeff Donaldson, and Gerald Williams.I really am enjoying this one.
Here we see Angela Davis, who was a powerful public speaker in the Black Liberation Movement, surrounded by words taken from her speeches.Interestingly, the jacket that Davis is shown wearing is from the "Revolutionary Suit," which was designed by Jae Jarrell, Wadsworth's wife and another AfriCOBRA artist included in the show!Can you give me some information on the Angela Davis painting?
Davis was a powerful speaker for the Black Liberation Movement. Here we see the energy of her words vibrating around her body. Davis is wearing the bandolier belt of bullets worn by several members of her circle.The "Revolutionary Suit," including the bandolier detail, was an actual garment designed by Jae Jarrell, who also designed the clothing nearby. It was a symbol of the armed resistance to oppression that black women could act on in the pursuit of revolution.Do you know what the bullets are?
They are made from leather and painted wooden dowels.Bandolier belts were popular symbols of revolutionary thought. There are other examples of their use in the later sections of the exhibition.Thank you!Does this piece relate to the ideals of the Harlem Renaissance?
Much the same vein as the Harlem Renaissance, the Black Arts Movement was in part about trying to create identity and reflect pride in black arts and culture. The Black Arts Movement could be described as the cultural arm of the Black Power Movement.This painting shows Angela Davis, a leader in the fight for racial, gender, and economic justice. This image and others from our collection, show women both past and present who fought and continue to fight for justice for African Americans. The artists use art to create a sense of unity, collectiveness, and pride among the black community, a tenant of both the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts Movement.Thank you, Rachel.What is the message that the artist is looking to communicate with the phrases painted here?
The painting pictures Angela Davis, an influential speaker, scholar and activist who advocated for civil rights at the time. She's surrounded by quotes from her public speaking and Black Power slogans as she holds a microphone to her mouth.You could imagine the way the text and image are integrated here that they’re meant to convey Davis speaking and more broadly her activism and what she stood for. The composition communicates her message, and the political message of the Black Arts Movement, of equity.You're welcome! The graphic, bold nature of this painting, along with the content, really encapsulates the aesthetic of AfriCOBRA, the African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists: positive role models, text, and bright colors.Thank you. That's very informative.What did she do?
Angela Davis is a political activist and civil rights leader known for her work in the 1960s. She is also the author of such books as "If They Come Morning," "Lectures on Liberation," and "Women, Culture, and Politics"She is also a powerful public speaker. Parts of some of her speeches are included in this work.Can you tell me who the Chuck referred to in this artwork is?
Chuck could be a reference to a Chuck who copied and popularized the "Revolutionary Suit" style that Davis is wearing in the painting. Jarrell included a note at the bottom of this painting that reads: "This is a replica of a revolutionary suit designed by Jae Jarrell in early 1969 for AfriCOBRA. 1. This suit is designed to reflect the present struggle of black people in the U.S.A. When Chuck jumps on and bastardize it as he does everything else we do, I want you to know he stole it from black giants - Africobra. Everytime one of our sisters wear one of Chucks stolen designs, they are helping to advertise Africobra. This suit is not for hunkies, strickly for black people in the present revolution, with a show of force for liberation."Thank you.What was the belt made of?
The belt is made from leather and painted wooden dowels (rounded wooden sticks) cut into shorter pieces.Bandolier belts with bullets were popular symbols of revolutionary thought, particularly associated with members of the Black Panthers. You may spot some other examples in this show. A real bandolier would hold actual bullet cartridges (ammunition).
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