Jimi Hendrix No. 71 [The 27 Club Art Series] Artwork

November 27, 1942 - September 18, 1970 Cause of Death: Asphyxia while intoxicated with barbiturates When I contemplated how I wanted to portray Jimi Hendrix for his role in my solo show, The 27 Club, I started my research by listening to his music. My initial intention was for his canvas to have a similar look to Kurt Cobain’s. However after listening to his song Freedom, I was gripped! Here I was creating an exhibit showing about fame, addiction, and death when this man was singing about Freedom. I scraped my original plan and decided to focus on this title of his song. What did freedom mean to Hendrix? Was it freedom from the addictions that plagued him and ultimately killed him. Was it freedom for his country that he displayed at Woodstock when he played the Star Spangled Version? Was it freedom as a black man during the civil rights movement? This song is considered one of his most self actualized pieces that he ever wrote. It is also one of two songs released posthumous. If only he could have found freedom… Freedom: The state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.