<strong>Summer</strong>/<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2012</strong> 46Homage to Elizabeth Catlettby Isolde BrielmaierElizabeth CatlettMother and Child, 1993<strong>Museum</strong> purchase 96.13It was a cool, sunny afternoon<strong>in</strong> spr<strong>in</strong>g 2010 when I first hadthe privilege of lunch with artistElizabeth Catlett. <strong>The</strong> reason for ourmeet<strong>in</strong>g was to discuss the upcom<strong>in</strong>gexhibition of her work that I hadbeen <strong>in</strong>vited to curate at the Bronx<strong>Museum</strong> of Art. I had presented my<strong>in</strong>itial ideas for the project severalmonths prior, primarily throughthe museum’s director, Catlett’ssons and her longtime friend, artistEmma Amos. <strong>The</strong> exhibition wasto be oriented around a “conversation”between works by Catlett andthose of twenty-one contemporaryartists, some of whom knew herwork well and others of whom wereunfamiliar with her oeuvre. Catlett’sresponse had been positive. She was<strong>in</strong>trigued. While I was eager to hearmore of her thoughts on her art andprocess, and on the work of youngerartists and the art world <strong>in</strong> general,I was really look<strong>in</strong>g forward to simplybe<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> her presence. It was, firstand foremost, an opportunity tobask <strong>in</strong> her glow and absorb wisdomabout life as it was, is and will be.“Stone is far more forgiv<strong>in</strong>g thanwood,” 1 Catlett said early <strong>in</strong> ourconversation. I looked at her hands,which appeared tired yet determ<strong>in</strong>ed.“Can you please tell me more?” Iasked. She took a sip of water. “Withstone, it’s a straight cut, there are nocomplications. But wood . . . woodcomes from nature and nature isbeautiful but complicated. So whenI decide to create with wood, I am
Beyond47Homage to Elizabeth Catlettalways presented with knots andtough areas that refuse to bend.”I cont<strong>in</strong>ued to stare <strong>in</strong> awe at herhands. <strong>The</strong>y were the hands of awoman who had worked hard andmeticulously, who had overcomechallenges while hon<strong>in</strong>g her knowledgeand skills and pay<strong>in</strong>g closeattention to her craft and the worldaround her. It occurred to me thather words were relevant not only toher artistic practice, but also to lifeitself—a philosophy to live by.Catlett was n<strong>in</strong>ety-four when Ifirst met her. Over the course of herprolific career, she created a vastrange of dynamic, canonical worksthrough her skill and vision as asculptor and pr<strong>in</strong>tmaker. She alsoworked tirelessly as an educatorand activist. And she was worldly,hav<strong>in</strong>g traveled widely and eventuallydecid<strong>in</strong>g to live and work <strong>in</strong>Guernavaca, Mexico. She was, asI saw <strong>in</strong> person on that chilly Aprilafternoon, a talented, trailblaz<strong>in</strong>g,multimedia, transnational artist, longbefore the terms had even emerged<strong>in</strong> our popular post-post-modernlexicon. <strong>The</strong>se qualities <strong>in</strong>spired me,as well as the twenty-one contemporaryartists whose work I presentedalongside hers <strong>in</strong> what would be herlast museum exhibition, Stargazers,which opened early <strong>in</strong> 2011. Shepassed away <strong>in</strong> April <strong>2012</strong>, less thana year after Stargazers closed.“<strong>The</strong> project is less about <strong>in</strong>fluenceand more about possibility,”I expla<strong>in</strong>ed to Catlett. “I want peopleto see what ideas and dialogue canand do emerge when your work ispresented next to work by youngerartists from around the world,particularly those who came of age<strong>in</strong> different worlds, and whose processesmay both overlap with anddiverge from yours.” She nodded.“Yes, who knows what people willsee or what I will see. It’s uncerta<strong>in</strong>but <strong>in</strong>terest<strong>in</strong>g,” she said. “And Imust speak with these artists. I wantto meet them and hear what it isthat they are th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g and do<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>their work.” She was <strong>in</strong>terested andengaged, confirmation for me thatthe exhibition would yield a fruitfuldialogue. And it did. Catlett methigh school students, museum staff,collectors and supporters. And whileshe did not ultimately meet with theartists <strong>in</strong> Stargazers due to schedul<strong>in</strong>g,she was the <strong>in</strong>spiration for thebroader conversations generatedabout the <strong>in</strong>terrelationships amongmultiple generations of artists, shifts<strong>in</strong> practice and process, address<strong>in</strong>gchallenges (artistic and otherwise)and how times have changed alongwith artists, artwork and opportunities.Catlett’s work and life—littledid she know, perhaps—cont<strong>in</strong>ueto ignite <strong>in</strong>sightful and necessarydebate, mus<strong>in</strong>gs and queries. As I satwith her and we f<strong>in</strong>ished our lunch, Ibegan to th<strong>in</strong>k back on what she hadjust said about how beautiful woodcan be while still “refus<strong>in</strong>g to bend.”<strong>The</strong>re was great wisdom <strong>in</strong> this statementand an immediate connection:Catlett had lived her life and herart <strong>in</strong> l<strong>in</strong>e with the qualities she hadobserved <strong>in</strong> the wood she sculpted.This was someth<strong>in</strong>g to embrace andshare, especially when I asked herone of the most common questionsshe has heard over the course of herlifetime: “What advice do you have?”Wood, I thought, it’s <strong>in</strong> the wood—unbend<strong>in</strong>g commitment, focus,determ<strong>in</strong>ation, beauty and grace.Isolde Brielmaier, Ph.D., is ChiefCurator of the Savannah College ofArt and Design, which <strong>in</strong>cludes SCAD<strong>Museum</strong> of Art and galleries<strong>in</strong> Savannah, Atlanta, Hong Kongand Lacoste, France.1 Quotes from Elizabeth Catlett, personalcommunication with author, April 25, 2010.
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