Created by
Lawrence, Jacob, American, 1917 - 2000
Printed by
Ives-Sillman, Inc., American, founded 1966
Subject of
Brown, John, American, 1800 - 1859
Date
1977
Medium
printing ink on printing paper
Dimensions
20 x 25 in. (50.8 x 63.5 cm)
Caption
“John Brown worked not simply for Black men—he worked with them; and he was a companion of their daily life, knew their faults and virtues, and felt, as few white Americans have felt, the bitter tragedy of their lot.” —W. E. B. Du Bois, John Brown, 1909
Radical abolitionist John Brown (1800–1859) fought and died for the emancipation of enslaved people. His life as an antislavery advocate and armed insurrectionist who was tried, convicted, and hanged for his rebellion has served as inspiration for numerous artists since his death. However, it would not be until 1941, when Jacob Lawrence created a narrative series of 22 paintings, that Brown’s life was visually documented in its entirety. Between 1974 and 1977, Lawrence recreated his series in print form.
Description
A screen print from the series “The Legend of John Brown” by Jacob Lawrence. The print depicts five corpses, four laying down and one slouched, on the brown ground. The first body at the top, wearing a dark green top, is laying with limbs akimbo. Next to his feet is the second body, with a light blue top, slouched against a rock. The third body, in the center and wearing a white shirt, is lying face down with their arms above their head and a yellow knife in their back. The fourth body, with a green shirt, is laying on their back with their hands at their side. The fifth body, wearing a black shirt, is laying on their sides with their arms above their head. A green-and-black snake is slithering on the floor near the fifth body.
On the front of the print, the artist wrote the series number and edition in the lower left corner [#10 51/60] and signed and dated in the lower right corner [Jacob Lawrence 1977].
Place printed
New Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, North and Central America
Portfolio/Series
The Legend of John Brown
Classification
Visual Arts
Movement
Abolitionist movement
Type
screen prints
Topic
Antislavery
Art
Resistance
Slavery
U.S. History, 1815-1861
Violence
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2007.6.1.10
Restrictions & Rights
© 2015 The Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation, Seattle / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5098ccf08-9272-4aa2-aa7f-fca1664c7dd4

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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