Surinam

Surinam, now Suriname, is a South American country whose colonial history includes plantation slavery and the resistance of Maroon communities. Those who escaped slavery built independent lives in the forest.

John Gabriel Stedman arrived in 1773 as an officer sent to fight the Maroons. He witnessed brutal punishment and described the conditions of plantation life. His illustrated account also recorded clothing, bodies and daily scenes within that unequal society.

Stedman formed a relationship with Joanna, an enslaved woman, and they had a son, Johnny. When he left for Europe in 1777, Joanna remained behind. Their story makes the divide between freedom and slavery painfully personal.

Published in 1796, his Narrative reached many readers. Its images of cruelty became influential in arguments against slavery, although Stedman's own position was complicated. The portraits and scenes show people whose lives were much larger than the work and punishment imposed on them.