Centerpiece Bowl
Brooklyn Museum photograph
Object Label
Already committed to a realistic style and to African American subjects, Eldzier Cortor was on his way to the Georgia Sea Islands when he was inspired to paint this image. A languid young couple is shown picnicking before the backdrop of a valley that has been flooded to construct a hydroelectric dam. Cortor endowed the muscular figures with a calm stoicism, modeling their facial features on the fixed and powerful forms of African masks. According to the artist, “[It] was created from my feelings in the face of devastation, and the two figures represent youth with hope.”
Caption
Russel Wright American, 1904–1976; Bauer Pottery Company. Centerpiece Bowl, ca. 1946. Earthenware, 4 1/2 x 14 in. (11.4 x 35.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Paul F. Walter, 1994.165.30. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1994.165.30_cropped.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Title
Centerpiece Bowl
Date
ca. 1946
Medium
Earthenware
Classification
Dimensions
4 1/2 x 14 in. (11.4 x 35.6 cm)
Signatures
not signed
Inscriptions
no inscriptions
Markings
on bottom, impressed: "(in script) Russel Wright/(block) BAUER"
Credit Line
Gift of Paul F. Walter
Accession Number
1994.165.30
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
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