The Seamstress is one of my favourite pieces by celebrated African American artist, Jacob Lawrence, his use of bold, bright colour and hard lines and the seamstress herself calls to me, illuminating how my mother established her independence and passage from Jamaica to England as a seamstress.
Lawrence’s narrative collections, influence by the shapes and colours of Harlem brought the African American experience to life using black and browns juxtaposed with vivid colours.
In his images of Harlem, Lawrence painted his vision of poverty, crime, racial tensions and police brutality based on his experience of life around him.
Lawrence’s themes included Black working women, health concerns, leisure time and the role of religion and spirituality in people’s daily lives. His most enduring theme, painted from 1945 – 46, in bold colours, repeating patterns and asymmetrical compositions focuses on workers in Harlem portraying the range of occupations open to African Americans at the time. The Seamstress would have been one of the occupations depicted in that series.
The Errant Modiste 