Created by

Donaldson, Jeff, American, 1932 - 2004

Subject of

AfriCOBRA, founded 1968

Medium

paint, foil, and ink on cardboard

Dimensions

H x W (artwork): 36 1/4 × 25 9/16 in. (92 × 65 cm)

H x W x D (frame): 38 1/16 × 27 7/16 × 1 3/4 in. (96.7 × 69.7 × 4.5 cm)

Type

paintings

mixed media

Date

1971

Description

This mixed media artwork by Jeff Donaldson shows the Wives of Sango. Three women are visible in the painting. The woman in the center is facing outward dressed in white. The other two women are in 3/4 profile facing either side of the frame. The woman on the left is dressed in shades of red and pink with a silver-colored diamond patterned neckline with small cutouts. The woman on the right is wearing a headband and is dressed in shades of green and yellow. All three women have gold- and silver-colored foil accents and are wearing weaponry including knives and ammunition belts. At the bottom in silver-colored foil is text that reads [OYA · OSUN / AND OBA WIVES OF SANGO]. At the center bottom is a double headed axe symbol. The artist signed the work at the bottom. The artwork is floating in a white frame.

Topic

African American

Africa

African diaspora

Art

Black power

Religion

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2017.33.1

Restrictions & Rights

© Jeff Donaldson

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

On View

Tate Modern (Bankside)

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Donaldson, Jeff, American, 1932 - 2004

Subject of

Jackson, Jonathan, American, 1953 - 1970

Haley, Harold Joseph, American, 1904 - 1970

Black Panther Party, American, 1966 - 1982

AfriCOBRA, founded 1968

Medium

paint on cardboard with ink on paper

Dimensions

H x W (artwork): 29 1/8 × 19 5/16 in. (74 × 49 cm)

H x W x D (frame): 31 1/8 × 21 3/16 × 1 3/4 in. (79.1 × 53.8 × 4.5 cm)

Type

paintings

mixed media

Place depicted

San Rafael, Marin County, California, United States, North and Central America

Date

1970

Description

This mixed media work is Jeff Donaldson's interpretation of a photograph taken of the 1970 Marin County courthouse incident. The original newspaper photograph and caption can be seen in the center of the image. The figure on the left in the artwork has his left hand outstretched and the source image in the palm of his hand. In the original photograph, the man on the left is James McClain. In both images, he is holding a gun in his right hand at eye level pointed toward the figure on the right. Unlike McClain in the newspaper photograph, the man in the painting is wearing a black and white horizontally striped shirt with white numbers, [81970], on a black strip reminiscent of prison clothing. He is also wearing tan pants and a white jacket.

The figure on the right in the original image is California Superior Court Judge Harold Haley dressed in black court dress robes. In Donaldson's mixed media piece, the black robes are partially visible but Haley's figure has a skull in place of his head and is reaching toward the man on the left. The piece is multicolored. In the center is black text on a white background that reads [GLASS] and repeats [-SS] below. To the left of the skull is [A] in the stars and stripes pattern of the American flag. The artist signed the work at the bottom. The artwork is floating in a white frame.

Topic

African American

Art

Black power

Law

Mass media

Prisons

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2017.33.2

Restrictions & Rights

© Jeff Donaldson

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Coleman, Floyd, American, 1939 - 2018

Medium

acrylic paint on canvas

Dimensions

H x W: 52 × 64 × 1 1/4 in. (132.1 × 162.6 × 3.2 cm)

Type

acrylic paintings

Date

1972

Description

This is an acrylic painting that depicts an abstract interpretation of a female figure. Done against a black background the shape is located primarily in the bottom left quadrant and partial top left quadrant of the painting. The bottom left features a wide swath of orange, topped with several textured shapes in shades of yellow, light brown, and grey. Shapes are clearly delineated by borders done in darker shades or alternate colors. Some shapes are patterned with narrow stripes and brush strokes. Above the figure is a grey rectangle outlined in green. Within the rectangle is a darker grey shape roughly resembling the head of an axe. There is a green horizontal line in the bottom right quadrant of the painting.

Topic

African American

Africa

Art

Religion

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Kera and Bennie F. Johnson

Object number

2011.102.2

Restrictions & Rights

© 1972 Floyd Coleman

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Bearden, Romare, American, 1911 - 1988

Owned by

Barnett-Aden Gallery, American, 1943 - 1969

Medium

oil on fiberboard

Dimensions

H x W: 24 × 20 in. (61 × 50.8 cm)

H x W x D (Frame): 28 5/8 × 24 3/4 × 1 1/2 in. (72.7 × 62.9 × 3.8 cm)

Type

paintings

Place made

New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America

Date

1955

Description

This oil painting depicts three abstract figures. Formed out of small rectilinear shapes in bright colors, the figures appear to be moving across an equally abstracted background.

Topic

African American

Art

Communities

Urban life

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Robert L. Johnson

Object number

2015.2.2

Restrictions & Rights

© Romare Bearden Foundation/Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY. Permission required for use.

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Alma Thomas, American, 1891 - 1978

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

H x W (Painting): 39 1/2 × 39 1/2 in. (100.3 × 100.3 cm)

Type

oil paintings

Place made

Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America

Date

1967

Description

This is an abstract and colorful mosaic-style painting with concentric circles filling a square space with a light green background. Each circle is composed of rectangular shapes of similar color and size, but each circle varies in color and width.

Topic

African American

Art

Local and regional

Nature

Resistance

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of William J. and Brenda L. Galloway and Family

Object number

2015.151

Restrictions & Rights

© Charles Thomas Lewis

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Wiley, Kehinde, American, born 1977

Subject of

Fletcher, Craig

Medium

gold leaf and oil paint on wood panel with metal

Dimensions

H x W x D (overall- framed): 40 × 24 × 4 1/8 in. (101.6 × 61 × 10.5 cm)

Type

oil paintings

portraits

mixed media

Date

2014

Description

Mixed media painting of Craig Fletcher based on Leonardo da Vinci’s Saint John the Baptist. The work has 22-karat gold leaf decoration. The painting shows Fletcher in the center. He is wearing a black t-shirt with blue letters and jeans. He is visible from the torso up with his head titled to the side. Fletcher’s right arm is raised in front of his chest and his other hand is resting on his hip. There are flowers in various colors with green stems around the edges and over top of the central figure. The oil painting has an architectural frame with columns and a raised base. [CRAIG FLETCHER] is painted stylistically in red below the painting. The painting is inset in a detailed architecture frame. There is a painted red star in the upper center of the frame. The wood panel is visible on the reverse and there is a label from the Sean Kelly Gallery with artwork information. There is metal hardware, including D-rings, screws, and brackets, on the reverse.The artist signed and dated the work on the back.

Topic

African American

Art

Clothing and dress

Identity

Religion

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of The Martin Z. Margulies Foundation, Miami, FL

Object number

2017.105

Restrictions & Rights

© Kehinde Wiley. Permission required for use.

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Portfolio/Series

Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Clark, Ed, American, born 1926

Medium

acrylic paint on canvas

Dimensions

H x W: 64 1/2 x 83 in. (163.8 x 210.8 cm)

Type

acrylic paintings

Place made

Vétheuil, Val-d'Oise, France, Europe

Date

1968

Description

Oval-shaped abstract acrylic painting with large horizontal brush strokes and three fields of color. The canvas, shaped like a horizontal ellipse, is covered by three main fields of color: orange-red, at top, blue-green in the middle, and pink at bottom. There is a single streak of white partway across the orange field. Encroaching onto the orange field is a spray and spatter of blue-green paint. There is a darker orange shadow behind the spray. The blue-green field brightens gradually to a more blue-based color as it nears the bottom. At the very bottom of the painting is a narrow streak of pink.

Topic

African American

Art

Men

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2013.125ab

Restrictions & Rights

© Ed Clark

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Portfolio/Series

Vétheuil Series

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Porter, James Amos, American, 1905 - 1970

Medium

oil paint on linen (material)

Dimensions

Unframed Painting: 14 x 12 x 3/4 in. (35.6 x 30.5 x 1.9 cm)

Framed Painting: 17 13/16 × 15 7/8 × 1 3/4 in. (45.2 × 40.3 × 4.4 cm)

Type

self-portraits

oil paintings

portraits

Place made

Paris, Ile-de-France, France, Europe

Date

ca. 1935

Description

This oil painting depicts the figure of a seated man holding an artist's palette. He is visible from the waist up, sitting in profile to the viewer. The figure, wearing a white collared shirt, turns slightly to the left, toward the viewer. He holds an artist's palette in his left hand and two brushes in his right. A wooden chair can be partially seen in the foreground right corner. The edge of an easel and canvas can be seen at the left edge of the picture. A picture frame can be seen on the wall to the right.

On the verso are three rectangular stickers adhering to the frame. One sticker is attached at the top. It has an image of James A. Porter and a block of text that reads "The Art of James A. Porter/ Dorothy Porter Wesley Research Center, Inc./ 2400 East Las Olas Blvd. ste 123/ Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301/ (954) 463-7880/ (954) 463-7881 Fax/ dpw_archives@hotmail.com/ #63 Self Portrait."

The bottom left sticker (clear plastic) "Self-Portrait/ Oil/ ca. 1935/ collection of Dorothy Porter Wesley."

The bottom right sticker "James A. Porter/ (1905-1970)/ Dorothy Porter Wesley Research Center Archives/ pmb - 123 2400 E. Las Olas Blvd./ Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301-1529 USA/ Phone (954) 463-7880 Fax(954)463-7881/ www.artnoir.com/index.porter.html/ email:artnoir@artnoir.com."

Topic

African American

Art

Education

Identity

Men

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2014.42.3

Restrictions & Rights

© James Amos Porter. Permission required for use.

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Tanner, Henry Ossawa, American, 1859 - 1937

Owned by

Barnett-Aden Gallery, American, 1943 - 1969

Medium

oil on wood panel

Dimensions

H x W: 16 5/8 × 22 in. (42.2 × 55.9 cm)

Type

paintings

Place made

Paris, Ile-de-France, France, Europe

Date

ca. 1916

Description

This oil painting depicts an impressionist landscape with two dark human figures and two donkeys walking from the left to right frame. One swathed, indistinct figure rides on the back of a donkey, carrying a white bundle on its lap. The second human figure walks between the two donkeys, which are walking parallel to each other, the farther donkey slightly ahead. The four figures are set on a bare road, that can be seen to wind its way into the distance. In the background are low rolling hills, and a small squat tree in the left hand corner. There is a full moon overhead, set in a sky of mottled blue green.

Topic

African American

Art

Families

Motherhood

Religious groups

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Robert L. Johnson

Object number

2015.2.3

Restrictions & Rights

Public domain

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Alston, Charles Henry, American, 1907 - 1977

Medium

oil paint and gesso on canvas

Dimensions

H x W: 48 3/8 x 64 3/4 x 1 1/4 in. (122.9 x 164.5 x 3.2 cm)

Type

oil paintings

Place depicted

Alabama, United States, North and Central America

Date

1958

Caption

Walking recalls the bus boycotts in the 1950s and anticipated the civil rights marches of the 1960s. The work not only depicts the spirit and conviction of the civil rights protests, it also references the significant role of women and youth in the movement.

Description

This colorful, modernist painting depicts women and a young girl walking in front of a long line of others. The figures move out of a shadowy background on the left, towards the light, emanating from the upper right corner. The line appears to be moving forwards, out of the picture plane. The women leading the line step forward strongly to the viewer's right; their leg movements are delineated by the columns of strongly contrasting light and shadow of their long skirts. The leading woman's face is upturned towards the light. Next to and slightly behind her a second female figure, with forward facing gaze, has her right arm around a much smaller female figure. This child figure moves with the line but turns her head to face the viewer, hands folded at the waist. Directly behind them is another female figure carrying a swathed infant. There are several isolated individuals outside the orderly grouping of the line. The line is the focus of their gaze; the nearest individual turns her back on the viewer as she focuses on the line.

Topic

African American

Activism

Art

Children

Civil Rights

Resistance

United States--History--1953-1961

Women

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Sydney Smith Gordon

Object number

2007.2

Restrictions & Rights

© Charles Alston Estate

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Duncanson, Robert S., American, 1821 - 1872

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

H x W: 35 1/2 x 45 1/2 in. (90.2 x 115.6 cm)

Storage: 142.2 x 167.6 x 33 cm (56 x 66 x 13 in.)

Type

oil paintings

Place made

Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, North and Central America

Date

1856

Description

A view of the Ohio River Valley done in the American Romantic style of the Hudson River School. The painting features an eagle soaring by the face of a cliff. The inclusion of figures is rare in Duncanson's work.

Topic

African American

Art

United States--History--1815-1861

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2009.13ab

Restrictions & Rights

Public Domain

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Johnson, Joshua, American, ca. 1763 - after 1832

Subject of

Westwood, John, American

Medium

oil paint on canvas

Dimensions

Framed: 38 1/4 x 33 x 2 1/2 in. (97.2 x 83.8 x 6.4 cm)

H x W (Canvas): 30 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. (76.8 x 64.1 cm)

Type

oil paintings

portraits

Place made

Baltimore, Maryland, United States, North and Central America

Date

ca. 1807-1808

Description

An oil painting portrait of John Westwood, painted in conventional English portrait style of formal, bust-length pose and arranged backdrop. It depicts a half-length male figure wearing a brown coat with silver buttons and white waistcoat against a dark background. The figure is clean shaven with short brown hair, and is encircled by a faux oval frame. Painted as part of the composition, the oval frame is slightly lighter in color than the background.

Topic

African American

American South

Art

Free communities of color

Men

United States--History--1783-1815

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2010.25ab

Restrictions & Rights

Public domain

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Slavery and Freedom Objects

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Harper, William A., American, 1873 - 1910

Medium

oil paint on canvas

Dimensions

H x W: 16 3/8 x 20 1/4 x 1 in. (41.6 x 51.4 x 2.5 cm)

Framed: 23 x 27 x 2 in. (58.4 x 68.6 x 5.1 cm)

Type

oil paintings

Date

1905

Description

This landscape painting depicts trees in the right and left foreground. Beyond, a field is visible under a blue sky with wispy clouds.

Topic

African American

Art

Nature

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2010.51.1ab

Restrictions & Rights

No Known Copyright Restrictions

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Calyo, Nicolino, Italian American, 1799 - 1884

Subject of

Unidentified Man or Men

Unidentified Woman or Women

Unidentified Child or Children

Medium

oil paint on canvas

Dimensions

H x W (painting): 24 x 20 in. (61 x 50.8 cm)

frame: 30 1/2 × 26 1/4 × 3 3/4 in. (77.5 × 66.7 × 9.5 cm)

Type

oil paintings

Place depicted

Weeksville, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America

Date

ca. 1840

Description

This oil painting depicts seven individuals gathered around a water pump. From left to right these figures include: a young boy working the pump handle wearing brown pants and jacket with a blue shirt, a woman seated on a basket of laundry, wearing a pink dress and white head wrap, a man with his right leg propped up on the edge of the basin in a wide brimmed straw hat, a kneeling youth in a red shirt drinking from the pump's spout, a woman carrying a bucket, a man carrying a basket of peaches over his left arm and several dead fowl in his right hand, and a woman holding a baby and a green parasol. A black dog lies on the ground behind her. All individuals except the woman and baby are on a square pavement of red brick. The water pump sits in the middle of the pavement surrounded by a low walled, rectangular basin. The pump is a rectangular stone pillar topped with a small dome. A spout protrudes from halfway up the pillar, and the pump handle is a lever that protrudes from the adjacent pillar side. Water flows out the spout into the basin below. In the background is a landscape of trees on either side of a wide street with a few buildings in the distance. On the right is a white house with a green door and shutters, and a fanlight over the entrance. In the distance are two other white buildings, one on the left with a colonnade and a tall steeple, and a much smaller one across from it on the right with a cupola. There are a several indistinct figures walking and riding down the street.

Topic

African American

Art

Children

Communities

Free communities of color

Men

Women

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2010.5ab

Restrictions & Rights

Public domain

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Slavery and Freedom Objects

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Gilliam, Sam, American, born 1933

Subject of

Dr. King, Martin Luther Jr., American, 1929 - 1968

Medium

acrylic paint on canvas

Dimensions

Framed: 73 7/8 x 49 7/8 x 2 5/16 in. (187.6 x 126.7 x 5.9 cm)

H x W: 72 x 78 in. (182.9 x 198.1 cm)

Type

acrylic paintings

Place made

Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America

Date

1972

Description

This is an abstract painting from the Martin Luther King series. Done with a thick layer of color, the painting field is made up of splashes of color in a variety of shades of pinks, yellows, blues, greens, and reds. There is a larger, more continuous field of blue at the bottom left hand side of the painting. There is a thin stripe of the same splash pattern down the center running from top to bottom.

Topic

African American

Art

Civil Rights

Local and regional

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2011.37.1

Restrictions & Rights

© Sam Gilliam. Permission required for use.

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Portfolio/Series

Martin Luther King Series

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Created by

Streat, Thelma Johnson, American, 1912 - 1959

Medium

tempera and oil paint on paper on mounting board

Dimensions

H x W: 15 7/16 x 15 11/16 in. (39.2 x 39.8 cm)

Type

studies (visual works)

paintings

Date

1942-1944

Description

This mural study includes depictions of various transportation and scientific industries. It is divided into two fields, an upper and a lower. The upper depicts examples of transportation technology, including a railroad engine, a propeller plane, a blimp, and a combustible engine. They are painted using broad streaks of color, contrasted with blocks of black and white. The lower field depicts a scene of science and technology, with African-American figures at work in a laboratory, a metal refinery, and a mine, set against a background of industrial scenes.

Topic

African American

Art

Education

Labor

Medicine

Science

Technology

Transportation

United States--History--1933-1945

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

Object number

2012.13.1

Restrictions & Rights

© Thelma Johnson Streat Project

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National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Visual Arts

Exhibition

Visual Art and the American Experience

On View

NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052

Data Source

National Museum of African American History and Culture