Female Figurehead Bust

c. 1938

Elizabeth Moutal

Associated Names
Elizabeth Moutal

Artist, American, 1909 - 2000

The sculpture is a bust depicting a woman with elaborate, coiled black hair adorned with a crown or tiara-like headpiece. She has a calm expression with intricate features, smooth, natural skin tone, and is dressed in a richly detailed garment with a green bodice featuring puffed sleeves and a textured, braided trim across the front, cinched with an orange and gold belt-like detail. The base of the bust is dark with swirling patterns and intersecting elements in shades of brown and black. The sculpture appears to be made from a finely painted material, possibly wood, given the texture and detailing seen in the surface finish.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    watercolor over graphite on paper

  • Credit Line

    Index of American Design

  • Dimensions

    overall: 39.6 x 30.5 cm (15 9/16 x 12 in.)
    Original IAD Object: 25" high; 20" wide

  • Accession Number

    1943.8.8105


Artwork history & notes

Exhibition History

1995

  • Wood and Wood Carving from the Index of American Design, Pensacola Museum of Art, 1995, no cat.

2002

  • Drawing on America's Past: Folk Art, Modernism, and the Index of American Design, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2002-2003, no. 12.

Bibliography

1950

  • Christensen, Erwin O., The Index of American Design, New York: 1950, p. 57, no. 106.

1970

  • Hornung, Clarence P., Treasury of American Design. New York, 1970: 17.

2002

  • Drawing on America's Past: Folk Art, Modernism, and the Index of American Design. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2002-2003: no. 12.

Wikidata ID

Q64558755

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