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Kara Walker

Freedom -- A Fable: A Curious Interpretation of the Wit of a Negress in Troubled Times

Maker

Kara Walker (American, b. 1969 in Stockton, CA)
Peter Norton, publisher
Typecraft, Inc., printer, (RISD MFA 1994, Printmaking)

Title

Freedom -- A Fable: A Curious Interpretation of the Wit of a Negress in Troubled Times

Year

1997

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Dimensions

Plate: 23.8 x 21 x 1.9 cm (9 3/8 x 8 1/4 x 3/4 inches)

Identification

Edition

Edition: 4000, not signed.

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Anonymous gift

Object Number

1997.107

Type

Exhibition History

Past Made Present
Dutch Shadows in the Black Atlantic
Sep 03, 2022 – Aug 06, 2023
Bodies of Evidence
Contemporary Perspectives
Jul 01, 2005 – Sep 25, 2005
Drawing the Line
Mar 30, 2001 – Jun 10, 2001

Label copy

Kara Walker is best known for her large, wall-sized silhouettes portraying stereotypical imagery of African Americans in the antebellum South. The linear cut-paper silhouette is closely allied with the period of her subject matter, and its black-and-white contrast mirrors the racial issues of her subject. The exquisite detail of this book, printed in an edition of 4000, was made possible through the use of commercial laser-cutting following the artist's design. In addition to using the pop-up format, most typical of a children's book, this page includes a movable lever to birth a string of babies.

One Voice, Many Visions
Work By African American Artists
Feb 20, 1998 – Jun 14, 1998

Image use

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In copyright This object is in copyright

Tombstone

Kara Walker (American, b. 1969 in Stockton, CA)
Peter Norton, publisher
Typecraft, Inc., printer
Freedom -- A Fable: A Curious Interpretation of the Wit of a Negress in Troubled Times, 1997
pop-up laser-cut book
Plate: 23.8 x 21 x 1.9 cm (9 3/8 x 8 1/4 x 3/4 inches)
Anonymous gift 1997.107

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