Frank Cieciorka
Encyclopedia
Frank Cieciorka was an American
graphic artist, painter, and activist. His best known work, a woodcut rendering of a clenched-fist salute, was a model for the New Left
emblem.
Cieciroka (che-CHOR-ka) grew up in upstate New York and attended San Jose State College in California, where he joined the Socialist Party out of opposition to American military intervention in the Dominican Republic and Vietnam. In 1964, he was a volunteer organizer during the Freedom Summer
drive to register black voters in Mississippi and served as field secretary for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
, experiences which shaped his political consciousness.
In addition, Cieciroka helped to organize the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party
, an alternative to the official white-dominated state Democratic Party.
Examples of the fist in political art can be found as far back in 1917, on an Industrial Workers of the World poster, but Cieciroka pioneered its modern usage. Having seen the clenched-fist salute at a Socialist rally in San Francisco, he decided it was a natural image for a woodcut. It gained widespread popularity when Cieciroka and others put the design on a button and gave out thousands at political rallies and demonstrations. In particular, the fist for the 1967 Stop the Draft Week became what art archivist and historian Lincoln Cushing considered “the iconic New Left fist — very stylized and easy to reproduce, picked up almost immediately by Students for a Democratic Society and others.” Although the Black Panther Party used as its primary logo a panther designed by Emory Douglas
, versions of Mr. Cieciorka’s "power salute" also were featured in its publications.
Cieciroka's other work included “Negroes in American History: A Freedom Primer,” a primer he wrote and illustrated, which used in “freedom schools” throughout the American South. The cover shows five hands reaching toward the sky, one of them a fist, possibly the first time the image of a fist was used in relation to the civil-rights movement. He also created posters for the United Farm Workers
and other labor groups, and served as the art director for The Movement newspaper.
In the early 1970s he moved to Humboldt County and became a noted watercolor painter, with a special interest in landscapes of his rural California home. He died at his home in Alderpoint, California
from emphysema.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
graphic artist, painter, and activist. His best known work, a woodcut rendering of a clenched-fist salute, was a model for the New Left
New Left
The New Left was a term used mainly in the United Kingdom and United States in reference to activists, educators, agitators and others in the 1960s and 1970s who sought to implement a broad range of reforms, in contrast to earlier leftist or Marxist movements that had taken a more vanguardist...
emblem.
Cieciroka (che-CHOR-ka) grew up in upstate New York and attended San Jose State College in California, where he joined the Socialist Party out of opposition to American military intervention in the Dominican Republic and Vietnam. In 1964, he was a volunteer organizer during the Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer was a campaign in the United States launched in June 1964 to attempt to register as many African American voters as possible in Mississippi which had historically excluded most blacks from voting...
drive to register black voters in Mississippi and served as field secretary for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee ' was one of the principal organizations of the American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. It emerged from a series of student meetings led by Ella Baker held at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina in April 1960...
, experiences which shaped his political consciousness.
In addition, Cieciroka helped to organize the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party
Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party
The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party was an American political party created in the state of Mississippi in 1964, during the civil rights movement...
, an alternative to the official white-dominated state Democratic Party.
Examples of the fist in political art can be found as far back in 1917, on an Industrial Workers of the World poster, but Cieciroka pioneered its modern usage. Having seen the clenched-fist salute at a Socialist rally in San Francisco, he decided it was a natural image for a woodcut. It gained widespread popularity when Cieciroka and others put the design on a button and gave out thousands at political rallies and demonstrations. In particular, the fist for the 1967 Stop the Draft Week became what art archivist and historian Lincoln Cushing considered “the iconic New Left fist — very stylized and easy to reproduce, picked up almost immediately by Students for a Democratic Society and others.” Although the Black Panther Party used as its primary logo a panther designed by Emory Douglas
Emory Douglas
Emory Douglas worked as the Minister of Culture for the Black Panther Party from 1967 until the Party disbanded in the 1980s...
, versions of Mr. Cieciorka’s "power salute" also were featured in its publications.
Cieciroka's other work included “Negroes in American History: A Freedom Primer,” a primer he wrote and illustrated, which used in “freedom schools” throughout the American South. The cover shows five hands reaching toward the sky, one of them a fist, possibly the first time the image of a fist was used in relation to the civil-rights movement. He also created posters for the United Farm Workers
United Farm Workers
The United Farm Workers of America is a labor union created from the merging of two groups, the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee led by Filipino organizer Larry Itliong, and the National Farm Workers Association led by César Chávez...
and other labor groups, and served as the art director for The Movement newspaper.
In the early 1970s he moved to Humboldt County and became a noted watercolor painter, with a special interest in landscapes of his rural California home. He died at his home in Alderpoint, California
Alderpoint, California
Alderpoint is a census-designated place in Humboldt County, California. It is located east-northeast of Garberville. It lies at an elevation of 472 feet . The ZIP Code is 95511. The community is inside area code 707...
from emphysema.