Identity

Madonna II, 1991

Color screenprint on wove paper

Artist's proof, aside from the edition of 99.

Signed, titled, dated and numbered AP 10/24 in white pencil, lower left

Blind stamp: Printed by Stovall Print Workshop Inc., Washington, DC

Museum Purchase made possible in part by a generous gift from Jane Joel Knox, 2020.30.2

Womanhood, marriage, motherhood, and family are themes consistently found in Catlett’s work. Her exploration of these subjects began early in her career: Her final MFA thesis sculpture of a mother and child earned first prize at the American Negro Exposition in Chicago in 1940. Catlett repeated the theme of motherhood in both printmaking and sculpture, borrowing elements from African art and pre-Columbian forms, and depicting women of color as dedicated, protective maternal figures. The composition and gold background of Madonna II also reference medieval and Renaissance religions images of the Madonna and Child, reinforcing the universality of the theme.

Which way? 1973/2003

Lithograph

Signed, titled, dated and numbered 2nd ed 15/25

Second printing by Raul Cabello

Museum Purchase

Catlett has been called one of the first Black feminist artists. During the 1970s when Black Power and feminism were becoming increasingly influential, African American women critiqued sexism and racism within both movements, respectively. In so doing, they continued a longstanding intellectual tradition of Black women analyzing the interplay between racialized and gendered oppression. It was within this historical context that Catlett created the lithograph Which way? Through this piece, Catlett takes a fearless look at how Black women have worn multiple faces, whether by choice or necessity. She invites viewers to consider the multiple ways Black women are seen in society and the competing roles Black women have often played.

There is a woman in every color, 1975-2004

Linocut, screenprint and woodcut

Signed, titled, dated and numbered 15/60

second printing

Blind stamp: Printed by J K Fine Art Editions Co., New York

Museum Purchase

Catlett, the granddaughter of enslaved laborers and daughter of educators, was one of the first three persons in the nation to receive the new MFA degree from the University of Iowa in 1940. There, she studied under artist Grant Wood, who famously urged her to make art about what she knew best. She committed to an exploration of her own gender and racial identity — an “enduring celebration of women of color” (Lena Hill, Provost). This print references the diversity of Black women’s skin tones, as well as the universality of women. It also affirms Black queer identities.