African Nude

1980

James Lesesne Wells

Artist, American, 1902 - 1993

Printed with flat areas of black, scarlet red, canary yellow, grass green, and earth brown, a nude woman reclines among leafy plants in this stylized, horizontal linocut. The woman has black-colored skin, long hair, and a necklace. Her head is to our right, and she rests on her left hip so her body faces us. She lies on a couch or chaise. Red forms behind her could be a headboard or screen. Large-leafed plants grow across the background, and a brown pot is in the lower right. The forms are outlined in yellow, which also fills in the spaces between them. Inscribed in graphite under the image are “African Nude” to the left, “a/p” at the center, and “James L Wells 80” to the right.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    color linocut on Japan paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Jacob Kainen

  • Dimensions

    image: 32.2 x 44.2 cm (12 11/16 x 17 3/8 in.)
    sheet: 43 x 57.5 cm (16 15/16 x 22 5/8 in.)

  • Accession

    2002.98.246


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Brody's Gallery, Washington, D.C.); Jacob Kainen, Washington, D.C., purchased February 5, 1992; gift to NGA, 2002.

Associated Names

Inscriptions

lower left in graphite: African Nude; lower center in graphite: a/p; lower right in graphite: James L Wells 80"

Wikidata ID

Q76342839


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