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Catalog Data

Artist:
William H. Johnson, born Florence, SC 1901-died Central Islip, NY 1970  Search this
Medium:
oil on plywood
Dimensions:
45 3/4 x 38 1/2 in. (116.2 x 97.7 cm.)
Type:
Painting
Date:
ca. 1939
Luce Center Label:
In this painting, enormous hands hold scythes, pickaxes, and shovels, symbolizing the brutal work of the chain gang. Johnson may have seen men like this when he was a child in South Carolina, but he might also have chosen this subject while working for the Works Progress Administration, where archivists worked to preserve the stories and songs of the gangs.
Topic:
Figure group  Search this
Landscape\road  Search this
African American  Search this
Occupation\crime  Search this
State of being\other\imprisonment  Search this
Credit Line:
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation
Object number:
1967.59.675
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
Department:
Painting and Sculpture
On View:
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 4th Floor, 31A
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center, 4th Floor
Data Source:
Smithsonian American Art Museum
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk7e5f5990c-eb31-408d-8296-0328c0365b4d
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:saam_1967.59.675