<I>Revolutionary</I>
date: label: Date
content: 1972
name: label: Created by
content: Wadsworth Aikens Jarrell Sr., American, born 1929
label: Subject of
content: Angela Y. Davis, American, born 1944
notes: label: Caption
content: "I have given my life to the struggle. My life belongs to the struggle. If I have to lose my life in the struggle, well, then, that’s the way it will have to be." — Angela Davis
label: Caption
content: Revolutionary is a tribute to political and social activist Angela Davis. The portrait is formed through a complex and dynamic arrangement of color and words. The words were taken from speeches given by Davis for the Soledad Brothers Defense Committee and an interview published in the September 11, 1970, issue of Life magazine. The image was inspired by Dan O’Neil’s photograph, also featured in the magazine.
label: Caption
content: The letter “B,” repeated throughout the composition, simultaneously represents the word “Bad” and the phrase “Black is beautiful.”
label: Description
content: This print depicts Angela Davis, a major figure in the fight for civil rights, in a state of impassioned speech. Davis' face and figure is formed out of strings of brilliantly colored letters, some of which form words. These letters are generated from a central point and radiate outward. The multiple colors and shading of these letters create the planes and contours that make up Davis' face, hair, and upper torso. Viewed from below, she is a monumental figure, head thrust forward, with open mouth. Her right hand, holding a microphone or walkie-talkie, is held up near her mouth. She wears a pink jacket that fastens along the left side. The jacket hem is edged by a red cartridge bandolier.
place: label: Place made
content: Howard University, Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Art
label: Topic
content: Civil Rights
label: Topic
content: Local and regional
label: Topic
content: Politics
label: Topic
content: Women
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Visual Arts
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: 2010.3.1
objectType: label: Type
content: screen prints
label: Type
content: portraits
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: © Wadsworth Jarrell
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: printing ink on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 37 1/2 × 31 in. (95.3 × 78.7 cm)