The Black Panther, 1966-2016

Vitrine #14: The Front Line: Representations of Mothers and Homemakers in the Revolution

Minister of Culture Emory Douglas, a former member of the Black Arts Movement (1965–1975), contributed a majority of the artwork featured in the Party’s newspaper, The Black Panther: Black Community News Service. Although he employed numerous artistic styles in his work, he is most noted for working in a pop art style. He used bold, hard lines and bright colors for his backgrounds and layered them with realistic portraiture to depict the everyday struggles of black Americans living in urban areas. Many of his posters depicted women and children in domestic settings, and common themes were the right to decent and affordable housing, access to healthy and affordable food, and rearing children to be young revolutionaries. Douglas’ sensitive treatment of women and the home in his artwork acknowledges the labor of black women caregivers and that work they do in the homes is no less radical or crucial to the movement as women activists organizing in the streets.


 

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