Bull Dager

Sam Doyle, Bull Dager, ca. 1980, paint on sheet metal, Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Margaret Z. Robson Collection, Gift of John E. and Douglas O. Robson, 2016.38.26
Copied Sam Doyle, Bull Dager, ca. 1980, paint on sheet metal, 39 1⁄8 × 25 1⁄2 × 2 3⁄8 in. (99.4 × 64.8 × 6.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Margaret Z. Robson Collection, Gift of John E. and Douglas O. Robson, 2016.38.26

Artwork Details

Title
Bull Dager
Artist
Date
ca. 1980
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
39 1⁄8 × 25 1⁄2 × 2 3⁄8 in. (99.4 × 64.8 × 6.0 cm)
Credit Line
The Margaret Z. Robson Collection, Gift of John E. and Douglas O. Robson
Mediums Description
paint on sheet metal
Classifications
Highlights
Subjects
  • African American
  • Figure — full length
Object Number
2016.38.26
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2016.38.26

Artwork Description

Doyle and his Gullah community on South Carolina’s St. Helena Island embraced personal choice amid the changing society they lived in, understanding that oppression came in many forms. The title of this piece reflects what is now understood as demeaning slang for an African American, masculine lesbian, but Doyle regarded the sexual inclinations, gender identities, and self-presentations of individuals as part of what made them unique, and his aims were to celebrate individuality. About paintings exploring this theme, Doyle noted: “That’s two in one, a man and a woman, oh yes, a natural.”
(We Are Made of Stories: Self-Taught Artists in the Robson Family Collection, 2022)