Mother's Day Post - Elizabeth Catlett



Sharecropper - 1952



Learning - 1948

Hello,


While studying at the library in Nashville one day, I ran across a publication about a world-renowned artist, Elizabeth Catlett.  I wanted to share her story with you all.


Elizabeth Catlett is an African-American artist that was raised in Washington D.C.  Her parents were both educators.  She received her B.A. from Howard in 1936 and was the first female to receive a Master's in Fine Arts from the University of Iowa in 1940.  While attending the University of Iowa, she was encouraged by her professor to portray what she knew best which was family and women.

In 1946 she received a fellowship to study in Mexico with some very prestigious sculptures and artists.  She became the first female professor and head of the sculpture department at the National Autonomous University of Mexico in 1959.  She married Francisco Mora in 1947 and later became a Mexican citizen.

Her pieces are heroic inspirations of African-American and Mexican working class women.  These pieces feature the endurance and strength of her subjects.  She has also been politically involved in improving the lives of women by picketing and protesting for women's rights.

She is still recognized today as a brilliant artist and sculptor.  Take a look at a few of her pieces below. 




Family



Mother and Child - 1983



Mother and Child - 2009