Emancipation House

George W. White, Jr., Emancipation House, 1964, mixed media: wood, cloth, and oil, 19 ¹⁄₂ x 23 ¹⁄₄ x 18 ¹⁄₂ in. (49.5 x 59.2 x 47.0 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1976.60

Artwork Details

Title: Emancipation House
Artist: George W. White, Jr.
Date: 1964
Location: Not on view
Dimensions: 19 ¹⁄₂ x 23 ¹⁄₄ x 18 ¹⁄₂ in. (49.5 x 59.2 x 47.0 cm.)
Credit Line: Museum purchase
Mediums: oil
fabric
wood
Mediums Description: mixed media: wood, cloth, and oil
Classifications: Sculpture
Subjects: Figure group
Architecture — domestic — cottage
African American
Animal — dog
Animal — bird — chicken
Allegory — other — liberation
Homage — Lincoln, Abraham
Object Number: 1976.60
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1976.60

Artwork Description

Events tied to personal experience and family histories are often at the center of folk expressions. Here the artist, a Texan of African American, Native American, and Mexican ancestry, incorporates history, humor, and memory into a detailed rural scene in which three men repair a roof while two women eat watermelon beneath an illustration of Lincoln's inauguration. Little is understood about White's intentions in using exaggerated stereotypical imagery. Yet aspects like the electrical wiring that once animated the rooftop men and lit the interior, underscore his delight in entertaining viewers.

Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006