Lot 1054
Robert Colescott (American, 1925-2009), "All Roads Lead to Rome", 1995, acrylic on paper, signed, titled and dated lower left, "Arthur Roger Gallery, New Orleans" label en verso, 41 1/2 in. x 29 in., framed. Provenance: Arthur Roger Gallery, New Orleans, LA; Dr. Robert L. Trahan (1933-2010), Lafayette, LA; thence by descent. Note: Robert Colescott was an African-American figurative painter who is known for his colorful expressionist paintings that confront the themes of racism, gender and social inequality. In his obituary in the NY Times, esteemed art critic Roberta Smith described him as a an American figurative painter whose garishly powerful canvases lampooned racial and sexual stereotypes with rakish imagery, lurid colors and almost tangible glee. Born in Oakland, CA, Colescott was inspired by Sargent Johnson, an African-American sculptor who worked with his father on the railroad. After studying painting and drawing at the University of California, Berkeley, Colescott traveled to Paris to study with Fernand Léger, drawn by the citys racial tolerance and thriving community of African-American artists. Following a sojourn in Cairo, Egypt, he returned to the West Coast, where he became a leading figural painter. Colescott received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1985; represented the United States at the 47th Venice Biennale in 1997 (the first African- American to do so); and was elected to the National Academy of Design in 1999. He taught for forty-three years as professor of art at the University of Arizona, until his retirement in 1997. His work is in the collections of museums across the country, including The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA, Albright-Knox Gallery, Buffalo, NY, and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN. The work offered here, entitled All Roads Lead to Rome, demonstrates his cartoonish style of depicting figures and the political and graphic nature of his work. Two Egyptian figures and a row of pyramids frame the background behind a black woman who states Giaconda! A good Italian name .We do better then! Colescott paints both biography and history with unwavering humor and honesty.
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