Created by
Scott, John T., American, 1940 - 2007
Subject of
Ledbetter, Huddie William, American, 1888 - 1949
Date
2003
Medium
ink on paper
Dimensions
H x W: 22 1/2 × 15 in. (57.2 × 38.1 cm)
Description
A black and white woodcut depicting two men sitting together. The man on the right faces the viewer and resembles blues singer Lead Belly (Huddie William Ledbetter). He sits with a guitar on his lap, his arms folded and resting on top of the guitar’s body. The man on the left is turned to face the man with the guitar, his face in profile to the viewer. Above the men is a round window. The background is entirely covered in a typographic design, with some of the letters arranged to spell out words including “slave,” “enslaves,” “controller,” “made,” and “prison.” Beneath the image, handwritten in graphite, is the title [Blues Wake] at left, edition [2/40] at center, and the artist’s signature and date [John T. Scott ‘03] at right.
Classification
Visual Arts
Type
woodcuts
Topic
Art
Blues (Music)
Musicians
Prisons
Slavery
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Juanita and Melvin Hardy
Object number
2020.58.6
Restrictions & Rights
© John T. Scott, Artists Trust
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5fac6d331-04f8-4f6c-b222-f6952aa63b68

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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