Biafra

Carlos Irizarry, Biafra, 1970, photo screenprint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.24.2, © 1970, Carlos Irizarry
Carlos Irizarry, Biafra, 1970, photo screenprint, image: 28 5835 in. (72.788.9 cm) sheet: 3140 in. (78.7101.6 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.24.2, © 1970, Carlos Irizarry

Artwork Details

Title
Biafra
Date
1970
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
image: 28 5835 in. (72.788.9 cm) sheet: 3140 in. (78.7101.6 cm)
Copyright
© 1970, Carlos Irizarry
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Mediums Description
photo screenprint
Classifications
Subjects
  • Children
  • African
Object Number
2013.24.2

Artwork Description

Irizarry was active in New York City’s pop art circles during the 1960s. He also shared political concerns with other local artists of Puerto Rican descent who were interested in social justice and the fate of the Third World. In this work he used a signature pop art medium – photo screenprint – to explore how the media portrayed victims in the short-lived West African Republic of Biafra, where forces against its independence from Nigeria used famine as a weapon of mass destruction.

Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art, 2013

Description in Spanish

Irizarry participó en el los círculos alrededor del movimiento de pop art en Nueva York durante la década de los sesenta. El compartió además las inquietudes políticas de los artistas puertorriquenos de la diaspora que estaban interesados en la justicia social y el destino del Tercer Mundo. En esta obra el utilizó unos de los medios artísticos mas representativo del arte pop — la serigrafía fotográfica — para explorar la forma en que los medios de comunicación masiva representaron a las víctimas de Biafra. Esta república, en el oeste de África, sucumbió ante los oponentes a su independencia de Nigeria que usaron la hambruna como arma de destrucción masiva.

Nuestra América: la presencia latina en el arte estadounidense, 2013

Works by this artist (162 items)

Mingering Mike, MERCY: "DIG IT" / WELL SHE LOVE'S ME, MINGERING MIKE & HIS FRACTURED SOUL BAND, ca. 1972 - 1975, ink and marker on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mike Wilkins and Sheila Duignan and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.8.85.2, © Mingering Mike
MERCY: DIG IT” / WELL SHE LOVE’S ME, MINGERING MIKE & HIS…
Dateca. 1972 - 1975
ink and marker on paper
Not on view
Mingering Mike, Gold Pot Records: MINGERING MIKE: SWEET WOMAN OF MINE, ca. 1972, ink, marker, crayon, and paint on paperboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mike Wilkins and Sheila Duignan and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2013.8.110, © Mingering Mike
Gold Pot Records: MINGERING MIKE: SWEET WOMAN OF MINE
Dateca. 1972
ink, marker, crayon, and paint on paperboard
Not on view

Exhibitions

Media - 2011.12 - SAAM-2011.12_1 - 77591
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art
October 25, 2013March 2, 2014
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge.

More Artworks from the Collection

Claire Falkenstein, City is Man, 1941-1952, linocut, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.14, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
City is Man
Date1941-1952
linocut
Not on view
Claire Falkenstein, Untitled, 1976, embossed paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.18, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
Untitled
Date1976
embossed paper
Not on view
Claire Falkenstein, Mandala, 1977, lithograph, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of The Falkenstein Foundation, 2019.27.19, ©1997, The Falkenstein Foundation
Mandala
Date1977
lithograph
Not on view
Nathan Oliveira, Site with Blue and White, 1978, monotype, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Moses Lasky, 2004.32.14
Site with Blue and White
Date1978
monotype
Not on view