Created by
Cyrus, Jamal
Subject of
X, Malcolm, American, 1925 - 1965
Audubon Ballroom, American, founded 1912
Date
2019
Medium
2023.60a (sculpture): stainless steel and wood with metal and brass
2023.60b (plinth): oak flooring
Dimensions
H x W x D (Overall): 74 × 87 1/2 × 31 3/4 in. (188 × 222.3 × 80.6 cm)
Description
2023.60ab: An abstract sculpture (a) with plinth (b) titled, Lights from the Garden, by Jamal Cyrus. The sculpture, which is a tribute to Civil Rights leader Malcolm X and symbolizes his assassination at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights on February 21, 1965, features seven stacked bentwood chairs, pierced with fourteen stainless-steel rods. The seven chairs, which resemble the bentwood chairs on the Audubon Ballroom stage on the day of the assassination, are stacked in three rows to resemble an Islamic minbar; a three-step pulpit used by Imams to deliver sermons in mosques.
All of the chairs are oriented in the same direction with the chairbacks creating the height of the sculpture and the seats creating the structure of the minbar’s steps. The sculpture has four chairs forming the bottom step, two chairs stacked above forming the middle step, and one chair above forming the top step. The stainless-steel rods, meant to resemble forensic trajectory rods, pierce the chairs’ seats and bentwood frames in various diagonally oriented directions which angle upwards, mostly piercing the chairs that form the middle and top steps. The Thonet style bistro chairs are medium brown and have hoop backs with an open bulb-shaped splat at the center, a round seat, and four slightly flared legs. The chairs also have stretchers made from a continuous piece of bentwood that run up the length of the chairs’ back legs into an arch shape that supports the sides of the seat, and then curves into a U-shape at the front of the seat where it is attached to the top of the front legs of the chairs. The chair seats are attached to the bentwood frames with metal brackets held in place with a mix of stainless-steel bolts and metal screws. The stacked chairs are held in place with brass screws. The chair at the top and the one that forms the front of the bottom step are different than the rest of the chairs. These chairs have a rounder, wider chair splat, while the others have a narrower splat with a slightly flattened top. The chair on the bottom row that forms the back of the bottom step has silver tone chair glides on the feet, while the front chairs of the bottom row and the back legs of the top row chair have brown rubber slides.
The sculpture is set upon a plinth constructed from tan to medium dark stained pieces of oak flooring of varying lengths glued together to form a flat, plain, rectangular slab.
Place made
Houston, Harris County, Texas, United States, North and Central America
Place depicted
Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Visual Arts
Type
sculpture
Topic
Art
Civil rights
Islam
Race relations
Resistance
U.S. History, 1961-1969
Violence
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Catherine Stallworth and Dave Anderson and Leah R. Bennett
Object number
2023.60ab
Restrictions & Rights
© Jamal Cyrus
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd58feb20b6-c81d-4064-b4a3-42454a954a89

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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