If photographs don’t exist, one should create them. Initially of the 20 th century, there have been sure absences in the way in which that African American historical past was represented within the canon of artwork historical past. Some collective experiences lacked photographs with which individuals might determine, which have been essential for the concept of group and a shared iconography to emerge.

The portraits created by Elizabeth Catlett (1915–2012) are clear, exact, and invariably private. Whereas a few of her works present occasions from African American historical past, others depict the individuals she noticed throughout her. Sojourner Fact, Harriet Tubman, and Phillis Wheatley are heroines who gave individuals braveness and steerage. However the artist additionally portrayed ladies at work within the fields or along side the highway—when they’re displaying vulnerability or resistance; when they’re troubled or relaxed. Catlett’s lithographs, woodcuts, linocuts, and even her small sculptures have been comparatively straightforward to exhibit in many alternative areas and may very well be bought at an affordable worth. Making artwork accessible to everybody remained a essentially necessary precept for Elizabeth Catlett all through her life.

at MUSEUM MMK FÜR MODERNE KUNST, Frankfurt
till June 16, 2024