Revolutionary,

1972

<p>In the late 1960s, Jarrell cofounded AfriCOBRA (African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists), an artists’ collective formed in Chicago with the intent of exploring and defining a global black aesthetic grounded in a shared African heritage. This vibrant, agitprop screenprint derives from Jarrell’s iconic <em>Revolutionary (Angela Davis)</em> (1971, Brooklyn Museum), painted in homage to the renowned political activist and intellectual. As in the painting, Davis wears a "revolutionary suit" designed by Jarrell’s wife, Jae, which incorporated a cartridge shoulder belt. Davis speaks into a microphone, with words and phrases—"love," "resist," "I have given my life to the struggle"—as well as the capital letter B (for "black," "bad," and "beautiful"), spilling into and completely filling the pulsating surface, which is executed in high-keyed "Kool-Aid" colors intended to evoke an uplifting response in the viewer. </p>