Araminta

Joyce J. Scott

Araminta

Medium: Beads, Plastic, and Glass

American abolitionist and political activist Harriet Tubman is one of the best-known figures of the 19th century, in large part because of her courage and ingenuity in leading thirteen missions to liberate more than seventy enslaved individuals from captivity in the South. Tubman’s reputation is inseparable from the saga of the Underground Railroad, whose network of safe houses she made good use of on her missions; but she also worked as a spy for the Union Army, and later in the struggle for women’s suffrage. Tubman, whose birth name was Araminta, is depicted here in mid-journey, rifle slung over her shoulder and a vévé (walking stick) in her hand. The artist is the sculptor, weaver, musician and educator Joyce Scott, who is widely recognized for her highly inventive work in jewelry, beadwork, and glass and is a 2016 recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship. Scott’s art reflects her personal take on all aspects of American popular culture, her ancestry, and the immediate world of her Baltimore neighborhood, but her works also offer an evolving commentary on issues regarding race, politics, sexism and stereotypes. Although she has worked with the female figure for decades, Araminta is Joyce J. Scott’s first large-scale metal sculpture.

Union Station
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