Old Man Cartwright with Adam and Little Joe

1987

Henry Speller

Associated Names
Henry Speller

Artist, American, 1900 - 1997

The image displays three figures with geometric and angular shapes forming their bodies. Straight lines and defined edges create an abstract composition. The figures have squared, segmented heads with wide-brimmed hats. Their torsos consist of triangular and square shapes with button-like circles down the center. The arms are elongated with simplistic, robotic fingers. The pants are depicted with solid, filled colors that lead down to pointed shoes, emphasizing the structured form of the figures.
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Artwork overview


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

The artist, Memphis, Tennessee; 1988 William S. Arnett, Atlanta, Georgia; 2020 gift to the Souls Grown Deep Foundation, Atlanta, Georgia; 2020 purchased by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1996

  • Souls Growm Deep: African American Vernacular Art of the South, Michael C. Carlos Museum at City Hall East, Atlanta, 1996.

2022

  • Called to Create: Black Artists of the American South, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2022-2023.

Bibliography

2000

  • Arnett, Paul, and William Arnett. Souls Grown Deep: African American Vernacular Art of the South. 2 vols. Atlanta, 2000-2001: vol. 1, p. 386, pl. 417, repro.


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