Embedded within the lines, colors and shape of every map lies a story. Within every state in our union lies a history. Behind every face is a life. While drawing this portrait of Emmett Till, I was struck by the hopeful spark in his eyes. After his shocking murder in Mississippi, Emmett’s mother had the courage to show him to the world in a drastically different light. In exposing what racial violence really looks like, she helped propel the US civil rights movement light years forward.
John Lewis
Out of humble roots in Alabama, John Lewis rose to become one of the most significant civil rights leaders in America. I was born on Bloody Sunday, the day he made his fateful march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. This event would help inspire the most important voting rights legislation in US history. John Lewis is no longer with us, but he provided us with a template in fighting for voting rights going into the future.
Signed prints of this portrait are available here, in my Etsy shop.
Martin Luther King Jr.
When people of color are continuously let down by our justice, healthcare, and economic systems, frustrations bubble up to the surface.
Civil rights icon, Martin Luther King Jr. summed it up best, ‘A riot is the language of the unheard.’
Signed prints of this piece are available here.
(25% of each sale will be donated to Black Lives Matter.)
W.E.B. Dubois
Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, he’d grow up to become a founding father of the civil rights movement. W.E.B. Dubois
Signed prints of this portrait are available here!
Rosa Parks
Malcolm X
Here's a portrait of iconic civil rights leader, Malcolm X, drawn on an old map of the streets of Harlem. One book that has always stayed with me is The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Learning about his struggle (and transformation) has great value. If you haven't done so, please give this book a try.
Signed prints of this piece are available here!
Muhammed Ali
He floated like a butterfly, and stung like a bee. Known as ’the Greatest’, this legendary boxer was also an civil rights activist, anti-war protester, devout Muslim, and quick-witted poet. His legacy will float on forever.
You order a signed print of this portrait here!
