Betye Saar
Sky Diving (from the series A Secretary to the Spirits [for Ishmael Reed])
1975-1978
Collage of cut printed papers, with watercolor, porous point pen, and ink stamps on laminated paperboard
15 x 10 inches (38.1 x 25.4 cm)
Gift of the Modern and Contemporary Collectors Committee, 2017.
Courtesy of the artist and Roberts Projects, Los Angeles, California.
2017.306:4
Notes:
This collage is part of a group that was commissioned in 1975 by author and activist Ishmael Reed to illustrate his book of poems, A Secretary to the Spirits (NOK Publishers, 1978). Saar's layered approach echoes Reed's poetry, which combines references to the ancient and the contemporary, the spiritual and the mundane. The collages incorporate a range of images: Uncle Ben represents the commoditization and mainstreaming of derogatory representations of African-Americans; colorful fabrics reflect Saar's lifelong habit of saving fabric scraps (her mother was a seamstress); and rubber stamps and collages of stars, moons, and palmistry charts point to her interest in mysticism.
Provenance:
The artist (Roberts Projects, Los Angeles)
Catalog link:
Artist page:
Century:
Classification:
Department: