Hale Woodruff dedicated his career to portraying Africa and its art. One of his most renowned works is The Amistad Mutiny. This mural vividly depicts a group of enslaved Africans revolting and seizing control of a ship. Inspired by renowned Mexican muralist Diego Rivera, Woodruff focused his art on the social and economic circumstances of African Americans.

African American thought leaders such as W. E. B. DuBois, Charles S. Johnson, and Countee Cullen influenced Woodruff’s artistic consciousness. While in Paris in 1927, Woodruff engaged with fellow visual artists in the “Negro Colony,” notably Henry Ossawa Tanner. During the 1940s, Woodruff embraced abstraction, broadening his artistic vision.