Name: Temperance, Let Freedom Ring
Made by and When: Gloria Young (Phatt Platts), ca. 2008
Material: Polymer clay, paint, cloth, paper, wood, metal, jute, cotton, basket
Marks: Phatt Platts is incised in the side of the doll’s left leg
Height: 10 inches from the top of the flag pole to the base; the doll measures 6-1/2 inches
Hair, Eyes, Mouth: Two sculpted painted-black pigtails, black-painted eyes, closed mouth with pink lip color
Clothes: Temperance wears a tea-stained dress with matching pantaloons and a red bandana tied around the neck. The black shoes are molded on. The doll is loosely tied to a bench with jute.
Other: An early example of Gloria Rone’s one-of-a-kind doll creations, this doll diorama represents a formerly enslaved, approximately 8-year-old girl. The doll is seated on a red, white, and blue plaid cushioned wooden bench. “FREEDOM” is handwritten on aged paper attached to the bench base. An image of a horse’s head is above FREEDOM. A stained American flag hangs behind the doll, a crumpled picture of Abraham Lincoln, and a basket of cotton to create the “Let Freedom Ring” theme. The name, Temperance, was assigned by the curator.
Gallery
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