Thornton Dial’s life has been forged on the hard edge of labor. From handling mules on his cousin’s farm in Alabama, at age five, to his years as a machinist at the Pullman Standard factory building train cars, Dial has developed an ethos of hard work, ingenuity, and fierce independence. Nowhere has this been more evident than in his art.

Dial’s work has historically focused on major social, cultural, political, and economic issues. He has addressed the complex and multilayered subjects of civil rights, women’s rights, and the plight of the poor, and has examined tragedies like the terrorist attacks of 9/11, and the war in Iraq. His work has been a tireless advocate of society’s underdogs, giving voice to the disenfranchised.