Militant
- On View
- Visual Arts Gallery
- Museum Maps
- Objects in this Location
- Exhibition
- Reckoning: Protest. Defiance. Resilience.
- Created by
- Andrews, Benny, American, 1930 - 2006
- Date
- 1996
- Medium
- oil on paper (fiber product) with adhesive and cloth
- Dimensions
- H x W x D (image): 29 3/4 × 22 9/16 × 3/8 in. (75.5 × 57.3 × 1 cm)
- H x W x D (frame): 37 3/8 × 29 3/4 × 1 3/8 in. (95 × 75.5 × 3.5 cm)
- Caption
- Benny Andrews is best known as an artist, educator, and activist. Militant is an excellent example of Andrews’s interest in placing themes of social justice into his art. His image of a man on bended knee recalls the figure of an enslaved man, bound in chains, designed by Josiah Wedgwood during the 1780s for the Society for the Abolition of Slavery. Titled “Am I not a man and a brother?” the image became a rallying cry for the abolitionist movement.
- In Andrews’s contemporary version of Wedgwood’s image, the figure is swathed in two American flags. By doing so, he evokes themes of African American patriotism while challenging the notion that Black Americans are unworthy of enjoying the full benefits of being United States citizens.
- Description
- A collage work depicting a kneeling figure with pieces of the United States flag. The figure is shown as a silhouette of cut out paper, painted in in tones of black and grey. The figure kneels on one knee with a hand raised, possibly with an open palm. The head appears to be tipped back with the face upraised. A three dimensional scrap of the American flag hangs from the back of the head with another piece of the flag draped between the figure's legs and trailing behind.
- Portfolio/Series
- Langston Hughes series
- Classification
- Visual Arts
- Type
- collages
- Topic
- Art
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Benny Andrews Estate and Foundation by courtesy of UNCF
- Object number
- 2016.148.7
- Restrictions & Rights
- © Benny Andrews Estate / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY. Permission required for use
- Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.