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Collage of five diverse artworks from the Hammer Museum Collections side by side. From left to right: 1) Contemporary painting of two embracing figures with surreal elements. 2) Post-impressionist style painting of trees with vibrant blues and greens. 3) Black and white illustration of a face with intricate patterns. 4) Japanese woodblock print style image of a figure in a checkered robe. 5) Photograph of a couple dancing, the woman in a black dress and the man in white

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Digital Archive Now Dig This!: Art and Black Los Angeles 1960–1980
Art Betye Saar, Let Me Entertain You
Let Me Entertain You, by Betye Saar, 1972

Betye Saar, Artist
Let Me Entertain You , 1972

Medium
Assemblage window
Dimensions
14 3/4 x 24 x 1 1/4 in. (37.5 x 61 x 3.2 cm)
Credit Line
The National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center, Wilberforce, Ohio. Photo courtesy of the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center

In this mixed-media triptych Saar addresses the role of African Americans in entertainment. In the first panel, a stereotypical black minstrel is depicted playing a banjo. Minstrel shows were a form of entertainment that ridiculed and stereotyped African Americans, often portraying them as silly, lazy, and ignorant. The second panel portrays the minstrel again, but this time the image overlays a violent lynching scene. The final panel depicts an African American activist holding a rifle, with the Black Nationalist colors of red, black, and green behind him. With Let Me Entertain You, Saar asks the audience to consider the alternative roles that African Americans adopted—like the minstrel—as less overt but equally resistant methods of survival.

Past Programs

UCLA Department of Art Lectures: Betye Saar, February 28, 2014