Swing Low: Harriet Tubman Memorial

This bronze maquette is by Scripps alumna Alison Saar ’78. The piece is a smaller version of the full-sized sculpture commissioned in 2008 for the Harriet Tubman Memorial Plaza in Harlem. The memorial itself is 13 feet high. Roots pull at Tubman’s retreating form, representing the roots of slavery, while the faces of former slaves she led to freedom adorn her skirt. Tubman appears to not only be on train tracks but almost seems to be a train herself: her defiant forward motion and strength recall an unstoppable force. After Tubman escaped slavery, she continued to risk her life by helping other enslaved African Americans reach the relative safety of the North. Saar is known for her sculptures as well as prints and illustrations. As seen with the Tubman Memorial, Saar often deals with themes of race, gender, and culture in her works.