#obac

Robert Sengstacke (photograph), Wall of Respect, Chicago, IL, 1967 [Jeff Donaldson papers, 1918-2005, bulk 1960s-2005, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. © Robert Sengstacke]

#bornOnThisDay Barbara Jones-Hogu (1938-2017) was an African-American artist best known for her work with the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC) and for co-founding the artists' collective AfriCOBRA. Via Wikipedia #PalianSHOW

Barbara Jones-Hogu April 17, 1938 – November 14, 2017was an African-American artist best known for her work with the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC) and for co-founding the artists’ collective AfriCOBRA. Via Wikipedia (photo) Jones-Hogu worked in a variety of printing techniques, including woodcuts, etchings, lithographs, and screen prints. Her work dealt directly with social and…

The Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC) was a group of Black artists on the South Side of Chicago who came together in 1967 to support the Black liberation struggle. One of their most significant collaborative projects was The Wall of Respect, an outdoor mural on the South Side that featured images of “Black Heroes” across multiple fields such as Malcolm X, Nina Simone, Cicely Tyson, and Nat Turner.

We acquired papers of painter-activist-educator Jeff Donaldson (1932–2004) in 2015.

The collection chronicles early activities of AfriCOBRA, a radical artist collective founded in Chicago in 1968. In 1970, Donaldson moved to Washington, DC, to become chair of Howard University’s Department of Art, where he would remain a key organizer of AfriCOBRA programs.

The name of the group at first stood for Coalition of Black Revolutionary Artists and later African Commune for Bad Relevant Artists. This 1971 newsletter is currently on view in our exhibition Expanding the Legacy: New Collections on African American Art in Washington, DC through March 21, 2017.