Letter from Birmingham City Jail
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
illustrated book with eight screenprints
Dimensions
overall (closed): 39.8 × 33.2 × 4.9 cm (15 11/16 × 13 1/16 × 1 15/16 in.)
Classification
Volume
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Ruth Fine in honor of Michele Wallace
Accession Number
2021.80.27.1-8
Art Historical Context
Faith Ringgold's *Letter from Birmingham City Jail (2007) is a poignant illustrated book that brings Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 civil rights manifesto to vivid life. Produced in collaboration with printer Curlee Raven Holten this volume features King's original text alongside eight striking screenprints by Ringgold, a trailblazing African American artist renowned for her narrative quilts and bold activism. Housed in the National Gallery of Art a gifted volume (39.8 × 33.2 × 4.9 cm when closed), it honors the enduring power of words and images in the fight for justice. King's letter, penned...