It’s a time of great loss. The death of the American painter, Emma Amos , adds another drop into the ocean of sadness threatening to flood our world.
Black Dog Blues, Emma Amos, 1983 artnews image
Emma Amos (American, born 1938). Preparing for a Face Lift, 1981. Etching and crayon, 8 ¼ × 7 ¾ in. (21 × 19.7 cm). Courtesy of Emma Amos. © Emma Amos; courtesy of the artist and RYAN LEE, New York. Licensed by VAGA, New York
Baby, Emma Amos, 1966, oil on canvas, 45″ x 50″
Artnews has prepared a brief slideshow of a few of her works. Ms Amos worked across several media, from drawing and painting to printmaking, tapestry and installation work.
Emma Amos was an artist, wife, mother, and (sometimes) reluctant activitist. She was a Guerrilla Girl! Guerrilla Girls work anonymously to expose gender and ethnic bias, but Ms Amos did say I was once a member of a very famous clandestine women’s group that worked at night and did not ever go out without masks on our faces.
Howard Cotter’s article in the New York Times Is worth a read. It’s a factual, insightful and compassionate summary of a very accomplished artist. He points out the significance of paintings like Tightrope, Equals and Work Suit.
Tightrope, Emma Amos, 1994, acrylic on linen with African fabric borders, 82″ x 58″
Equals, Emma Amos, acrylic on linen fabric, image transfer, African fabric borders, 1992
Work Suit, 1994 Acrylic on linen, with African fabric borders and photo transfer, 74″ x 54″ Image courtesy Ryan Lee Gallery
If you’re like me, you’re wondering why you’ve never heard of Emma Amos, or seen her work. She wondered the same thing. The ARTnews article about her career quotes her: I wake up in the morning and say, ‘I have one piece at the Museum of Modern Art. I wonder, Is it still there?’ ‘You know, I wonder if I’ve been deaccessioned,’ she said. ‘And I wonder how come nobody knows who I am?’
As we all know, it’s time for that to change.
Love her work– her irony, humour and intelligence. Thank you for putting this together, a fine before dinner treat.
I can hardly wait to see some of it in person. I think the scale will add to it, too. Thanks for reading, Diane.
This is such a good article Terry. And really why isnt she a household name? I love the searing anger and intelligence in her work.
T
Thanks, T. Thanks for reading, and following. The work is powerful; I admire the playfulness of it, too, in the face of injustice.
This is great work to see. Another artist who didn’t get her due. I was lucky enough to see a Guerrilla Girls exhibition last summer at the Hirshhorn D.C. It was quite overwhelming and amazing.
Lucky you! They are some of my heroes! Thanks for reading, S.