Terra-Cotta Head

ca. 1960

Elizabeth Catlett American, 1915 - 2012

Not On View

Terra-Cotta Head: 1 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

Throughout her career, Elizabeth Catlett addressed two compelling issues: social justice and the lives of women. Her admiration for the politically significant work of the Mexican Muralists led her to Mexico City in 1946; a year later she established permanent residency and lived in Cuernavaca until her death. Over the years, her work assimilated global influences ranging from the European-based traditions of her education to her own discoveries of African and Olmec sculpture. This small, terra-cotta head eloquently represents Catlett’s syncretic approach. While the rounded head shape and high cheekbones resemble those of the colossal stone heads made by the Olmec people of southern Mexico (between 1200 and 400 BCE), the generous features and hair texture evoke a beauty of African descent. This blending of distinctive characteristics speaks of the enriching potential of diaspora and an inherent human dignity that transcends ethnic and national differences.

From Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts 89 (2015)

Title Terra-Cotta Head

Artwork Date ca. 1960

Artist Elizabeth Catlett

Life Dates 1915 - 2012

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. American

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. ----------

Medium Terracotta

Dimensions Overall: 8 1/4 × 9 1/4 × 11 inches (21 × 23.5 × 27.9 cm)

Classification Sculpture

Department African American Art

Credit Museum Purchase, Friends of African and African American Art

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 2006.63

Markings

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Provenance

(Top Hat Antiques, Northville, Michigan, USA);
2006-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Elizabeth Catlett, Terra-Cotta Head, ca. 1960, terracotta. Detroit Institute of Arts, Museum Purchase, Friends of African and African American Art, 2006.63.