Dean Ellis: Frederick Douglass

Artist: Dean Ellis
1920 -
Nationality: American
Artwork Year: 1988
Image Size: 21 by 18 inches
Overall Size: 27 by 24 inches
Medium: Acrylic on Masonite

Frederick Douglass was the first black American to play a major national leadership role in emancipation. Born of a white father and a slave mother, young Douglass soon showed signs of independence: he fought with one of his overseers, and was sold off to a Baltimore family whose members recognized his abilities and taught him to read and write. With their connivance, he escaped to New England. There, he attracted the attention of anti-slavery leaders by his eloquence, nobility of character and even by his physical presence, for he stood six feet tall. In 1845, he published his autobiography -- Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. This attracted nationwide attention, and started Douglass on a long career of editing anti-slavery journals which proclaimed the rights of women as well as blacks. Two visits to England brought him international fame. During the war, his newspaper, The North Star, ardently supported the use of Negro troops in the Union army, and he recruited soldiers for the famous 54th Massachusetts -- the first all black regiment to fight in the war. Douglass' first wife was a black woman; in his old age, he married a white woman. As he said, his first wife was his mother's color and his second, his father's color. It was to this goal of complete equality that he alluded in one of his last statements: "The real question is whether American justice, liberty, civilization, law, and Christianity can be made to include and protect all Americans."

This artwork was originally published on the Fleetwood® Commemorative Cover for The Shapers of America series issued in 1987.

Artwork Copyright © 1988 Unicover Corporation. All Rights Reserved under United States and international copyright laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, transmit, or otherwise exploit the Artwork in any way. Images of the Artwork may be watermarked and/or digitally watermarked. Any sale of the physical original does not include or convey the Copyright or any right comprised in the copyright.

Our Stock Number (SKU): XB11793

US$ Price: $2,500.00

Easy Purchase Plan: Buy this ArtworkOriginal with 8 monthly payments. Shipping and handling will be added to the first payment. Payments will be charged automatically as due to your Credit Card.

How to buy Original Artwork:

If you would like to buy Original Artwork, there are several convenient ways:

Use The Artwork Gallery: simply click the "Hang in Gallery" for pictures of interest. This puts the picture in your Personal Artwork Gallery, where you can view or remove it. When you've finished hanging artwork in your Personal Artwork Gallery, Go to your Personal Artwork Gallery and select an option for contacting us or ordering from us from there.

To get in touch with us directly about a piece of Artwork by Phone note the SKU and dial TOLL FREE 1-800-287-4079 from throughout U.S. and Canada.