Why Born Enslaved!

is a life-sized bust by the French sculptor Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux depicting a bound woman of African descent.Carpeaux executed versions of the sculpture in plaster, marble, terracotta, and bronze.While the composition, modeled in 1868, debuted at the Paris Salon in 1869 and was reproduced in various media, the marble version was carved in 1873.[1] The work was a preparatory work for the commission he had for the Fontaine de l'Observatoire, a fountain in the Jardin Marco Polo, south of the Jardin du Luxembourg in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.[2] Carpeaux explored the theme of slavery in his artwork after abolition in France in 1848 and the end of the American Civil War in 1865.
Jean-Baptiste CarpeauxAbolitionismCleveland Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of ArtNational Museum in WarsawNy Carlsberg GlyptotekPetit PalaisAfricanFontaine de l'ObservatoireJardin du Luxembourg6th arrondissement of ParisAmerican Civil WarpolychromedIndianapolis Museum of ArtMuseum of Fine Arts, HoustonCarlsberg FoundationCity of Paris Museum of Fine ArtsBrooklyn MuseumKara Walker