The bathroom at the mission is dreary at best, with holes in the walls and floor, peeling lead paint, no toilet paper, showers without handles. Mothers nevertheless keep their children scrupulously clean, singing praise to God. Here, Renee cleans her daughters face with plenty of elbow grease. Olive Branch Mission, Chicago.
1999
Artist, American, born 1949

Artwork overview
-
Medium
gelatin silver print
-
Credit Line
-
Dimensions
sheet: 40.5 × 50.5 cm (15 15/16 × 19 7/8 in.)
image: 33.1 × 49.1 cm (13 1/16 × 19 5/16 in.) -
Accession
2015.19.5134
Artwork history & notes
Provenance
Donna Ferrato, New York; gift to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2009; acquired by NGA, 2015.
Associated Names
Exhibition History
1999
The Way Home: Ending Homelessness in America, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, December 4, 1999 – January 30, 2000
Bibliography
1999
The Way Home: Ending Homelessness in America. Exh. cat. Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, 1999: 90.
Inscriptions
on verso, signed by artist, across center in graphite: © Donna Ferrato