<I>But I'm Still Fly</I>
date: label: Date
content: 2014
name: label: Created by
content: Dr. Fahamu Pecou, American, born 1975
notes: label: Caption
content: “Grave representations of Black men act like a force of gravity, restricting their mobility. We meet Black youth with fear and loathing, limiting their potential with tragic stats and stories of death. But I’m Still Fly offers an alternative narrative, one that locates the tension between aspiration and limitation. … This piece asks: What if we believed in the abilities of our Black boys more than we lamented their identity? What if we taught them that they could transcend their so-called limitations? What if we encouraged them to fly?” — Fahamu Pecou
label: Caption
content: Pecou’s painting features the fashion trend “saggin,” where underwear is worn above sagging pants. The style was popular among younger African American males and often perceived by others as a negative marker of social status.
label: Description
content: An acrylic painting on canvas with copper and zinc leaf. The painting depicts the lower torso and legs of a young man jumping upward. His torso and arms, mostly out of frame, are bare. He is wearing several overlapping pairs of underwear, jeans that sag to mid-thigh, and green high top shoes. The man's right hand is holding up his jeans, and his left arm is lowered by his side in a fist. Gold leaf sheets applied to the canvas surround the figure, and two (2) sheets of gold leaf are burnished on the man's figure at his hip. The gold leaf extends to cover the edges of the canvas.
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Art
label: Topic
content: Fashion
label: Topic
content: Identity
label: Topic
content: Men
label: Topic
content: Resistance
label: Topic
content: Youth
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Visual Arts
label: Exhibition
content: Reckoning: Protest. Defiance. Resilience.
label: On View
content: NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Culture/Fourth Floor, 4 052
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2015.69
objectType: label: Type
content: acrylic paintings
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: © Fahamu Pecou
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: acrylic paint , copper and zinc on canvas
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 120 × 60 × 2 in. (304.8 × 152.4 × 5.1 cm)