Throughout African American history women have been a major part of it. “The word trope has also come to be used for describing commonly recurring literary and rhetorical devices, motifs or clichés in creative works.” The tropes of battle and women empowerment are viewed through many pieces of texts in black history, one of them being Wadsworth Jarrells piece of Angela Y. Davis and Jae Jarrells two-piece revolutionary suit. Wadsworth Aikens Jarrell is an African American painter printmaker, and sculptor.
“He was born in Albany, Georgia, and moved to Chicago, Illinois, where he attended the Art Institute of Chicago. After graduation, he became heavily involved in the local art scene and through his early work he explored the working life of blacks in Chicago and found influence in the sights and sounds of jazz music. In the late 1960s he opened WJ Studio and Gallery, where he, along with his wife, Jae, hosted regional artists and musicians.
Elaine “Jae” Jarrell (born Elaine Annette Johnson in 1935) is an American artist best known for her fashion designs and her involvement with the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s. Influenced by her grandfather’s work as a tailor, Jarrell learned about fabrics and sewing at a young age. It was learning these skills that set her on her path as an artist, fashion designer, and vintage clothing dealer.
In 1968, Jae Jarrell, along with Wadsworth Jarrell, Jeff Donaldson, Barbara Jones-Hogu, and Gerald Williams, founded AfriCOBRA, the African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists. As part of their manifesto, Jarrell strived to provide positive representation of the African diaspora. Her goal was to produce garments that inspired pride, power, energy, and respect in African American communities.”
