%C2%A9 Glenn Ligon
Untitled: Four Etchings [D], 1992
Soft-ground etching, aquatint, spitbite, and sugarlift etching on black paperexpand_more
Gift of the Print and Drawing Councilexpand_more P.93.17.4
Not on Viewexpand_more
Multi-disciplinary artist Glenn Ligon develops themes from African American history and culture, ranging from slave narratives to literary classics to the "Million Man March" on Washington, D.C.
For this suite of etchings, Ligon addresses lingering racism in America by invoking the autobiographical writings of renowned Black authors. The prints with black texts printed on white paper feature excerpts from the 1928 essay "How It Feels to Be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston. Ligon explains: "The prints play with the notion of becoming 'colored' and how that 'becoming' obscures meaning and also created this beautiful, abstract thing." The pair of etchings with black texts printed on black paper feature texts from Ralph Ellison's 1952 novel Invisible Man, which describes Black people in America as ghosts, present and real, but because of racism, remaining unseen. Together, the prints symbolically illustrate the continued social and cultural separation between Black and white Americans.
Details
- Title
- Untitled: Four Etchings [D]
- Artist Life
- born 1960
- Role
- Maker
- Accession Number
- P.93.17.4
- Provenance
- (G. W. Einstein, Inc., New York); sold to MIA, 1993.
- Curator Approved
This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know
© Glenn Ligon