Bill Traylor, Man in Black and Blue with Cigar and Suitcase, ca. 1939–1942, pencil and poster paint on cardboard. Collection of Jerry and Susan Lauren © 1994, Bill Traylor Family Trust. Photo: Matt Flynn © Smithsonian Institution

Bill Traylor, Untitled (Event with Man in Blue and Snake), 1939, colored pencil and pencil on cardboard. Collection of Penny and Allan Katz © 1994, Bill Traylor Family Trust. Photography by Gavin Ashworth

Bill Traylor, Mother with Child, ca. 1939–1942, colored pencil and pencil on cardboard. Collection of Judy A. Saslow © 1994, Bill Traylor Family Trust. Photo by James Prinz, Chicago

Bill Traylor, Red Man, ca. 1939–1942, pencil and poster paint on cardboard. Collection of Jerry and Susan Lauren © 1994, Bill Traylor Family Trust. Photo: Matt Flynn © Smithsonian Institution