SIA Gallery of Style | The Liberation of Aunt Jemima by Betye Saar

And now for the Gallery of Style for Betye Saar’s powerful found object assemblage, The Liberation of Aunt Jemima.

About Style Imitating Art

Style Imitating Art is hosted by Salazar of 14 Shades of Grey, Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge, and Marsha of Marsha in the Middle and it challenges us to draw fashion inspiration from works of art. Every other Monday, one of the hosts, acting as curator, selects an inspiration artwork that they will each post on their blogs. The following Monday, each host shares her art inspired outfit. Participants are invited to submit their art inspired outfits to the curator by 10:00 p.m. EST on the Tuesday following the hosts’ art inspired outfit posts. The following day, Wednesday, the curator will share all of the submissions on her blog. Since I am the curator this week, here is my Gallery of Style.

Remember, you don’t have to be a blogger to join. You are invited to share your images on Instagram or other social media platforms. Just be sure to tag Salazar, Shelbee, and Marsha on Instagram so the hosts know you have joined. Go have some fun in your closets and join one of our SIA challenges!

The Artwork

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima by Betye Saar

The Gallery of Style

The submissions are in no particular order. If you have submitted a photo and I did not include it, please let me know and I will make the necessary edits. Sometimes emails get lost in the shuffle. That being said, we would love to see more participants join us for our fun style challenges. Anyone is welcome to play along. Just watch for our Monday posts when we share the artwork, style an outfit inspired by it, and email it to one of the co-hosts to be featured in our gallery posts. We encourage you to invite your friends, too! 

You can read more details about each outfit by clicking on the individual blog links or the images in this post.

Marsha of Marsha in the Middle

Marsha had to step out of her comfort zone a bit for this art challenge. She chose a beautiful black and red floral sweater dress from Gudrun Sjoden. The bodice of the dress mimics the rectangular shape of the assemblage as well as the notecard display in the center of the prominent Aunt Jemima figure. The flowers on Marsha’s dress, although not white, are similar in shape and structure to the cotton bolls at the bottom of the assemblage. Despite her discomfort, I think Marsha’s dress is absolutely perfect for representing this artwork!

Salazar of 14 Shades of Grey

In Salazar’s words: “This is such a thought-provoking piece (in every sense of the word), and I know I wouldn’t be able to do it justice, but I was determined to try my best. A few things jumped out at me – the wooden frame of the shadow box, the colorful dress on the central Aunt Jemima, and the faces in the background behind her. So I translated those into my most colorful sweater and a colorful scarf borrowed from my mom, framed in brown, and accessorized with a cameo as a nod to the face. It’s a bit of a loose interpretation, but I’m happy with it!”

I think Salazar’s outfit accurately captures both the central Aunt Jemima figure as well as the smaller postcard image of Aunt Jemima who is wearing a brownish colored striped dress. It is an unexpected combination, but it really works!

Sally of Within a World of My Own

Sally kept things easy for herself by identifying three elements from the inspiration artwork – primary colors, print mix, scarf – to include in her outfit interpretation. She completed her look with some of her signature handmade jewelry. I love how the mix of plaids captures all the square and rectangular elements of the artwork while the bright colors add even more appeal to this cute outfit.

Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge

My outfit focused primarily on the central Aunt Jemima figure and her red floral dress. I styled a recently thrifted red floral dress over black under layers with a red and black gingham top to highlight Aunt Jemima’s red and white gingham head wrap. My red plaid coat represents all the blocks and squares in the artwork. I was really pleased with this opportunity to style a lightweight dress in the midst of a very snowy winter.

I hope you all have enjoyed this round of Style Imitating Art. If you would like to try one of these style challenges, be sure to stop back on Monday, February 2, 2026, for Salazar’s next art pick. 

Keeping it on the edge, 

Shelbee