NARRATOR:

This resolute-looking figure of a woman seems to be gazing away from us, toward some distant horizon. Study her skirt. You’ll see the outlines of two children cut into its smooth surface. The woman holds her hands over them, almost as if she’s protecting or nurturing the generations to come. The artist, Sargent Johnson, carved this work out of a block of redwood. He then covered it with many layers of gesso, a preparation of plaster and glue, as well as cloth and, finally, paint. As you can see, he chose to emphasize only a few details—like the swirling lines of the woman’s hair, or the buttons on her blouse.

Johnson, who was born in 1888 in Boston, moved to San Francisco in 1915. He was of Native American, Swedish, and African American descent, but identified fully with the African American part of his heritage. He is remembered today as an artist of the Harlem Renaissance, even though he lived and worked in San Francisco. Like this resolute, powerful figure, much of the work Johnson made during his long career as a sculptor is concerned with showing the beauty and dignity of his people.