Quilt, "President Obama"
Decorative Arts and Design
MEDIUM
Various textiles, plastic buttons
DATES
2010
DIMENSIONS
60 1/4 x 47 in. (153 x 119.4 cm) (show scale)
SIGNATURE
Quilt Front, in white paint: "CUMMINGS 2010."
COLLECTIONS
Decorative Arts and Design
ACCESSION NUMBER
2013.14
CREDIT LINE
Gift of Dorothy Bobrow in memory of her sister, Thelma Lippman Scott; Mrs. George Liberman, Alice Topp Lee, and Mrs. Hans H. Zinsser, by exchange and Designated Purchase Fund
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION
Polychrome pictorial textile quilt of President Obama, machine sewn with some hand sewing applied materials include plastic buttons, white paint, and marker pen. Signed in white paint at bottom front of quilt. "CUMMINGS 2010". Quilt Center: depicts President Obama, created from black and white fabric, in a striped shirt with white colar and cuffs, with red fabric applique flag at proper right breast with some ink markings. Plastic disc with crystals (?) attached to tie, yellow fabric between figures arms and body; background comprised of several poluchrome fabrics. White paint applied tp hair and black and white paint on hands. Surrounding President Obama is text painted in white paint with black borders: "HE DID THE BEST HE COULD WITH WHAT HE HAD/ THURGOOD MARSHALL/ MARTIN LUTHER KING/ I HAVE A DEAM." Orange fabric sun at top proper right of central figure.
Borders of quilt are comprised of of black and white fabric amd are as follows: Bottom front: white fabric with black marker: "BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA AUGUST 4, 1961-BORN/ 44TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 2008." Proper left band: white fabric with black marker: "HOLD ON FAST TO DREAMS MY SON. FOR IF DREAMS DIE LIFE IS A BROKEN-WINGED BIRD THAT CANNOT FLY", "LANGSTON HUGES." Top band black fabric with white paint: "OUR GOVERNMENT RESTS IN PUBLIC OPINION/ WHOEVER CAN CHANGE PUBLIC OPINION, CAN/ CHANGE GOVERNMENT, PRACTICALLY JUST SO MUCH/ ABRAHAM LINCOLN"; Proper right band, black fabric with white paint: "THE CONUNDRUM OF COLOR IS THE INHERITANCE OF EVERY/ AMERICAN, BE HE/ SHE LEGALLY OR ACTUALLY BLACK OR WHITE, JAMES BALDWIN."
Band borders have sewn, repeating and differently sized blue, black, green, and white buttons applied above text. Quilt binding at edges is grey, plain weave fabric. Quilt back is red plain woven (linen?) Fabric, attached to reverse of wuilt are four pieces of fabric for hanging.
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Michael A. Cummings (American, born 1945). Quilt, "President Obama," 2010. Various textiles, plastic buttons, 60 1/4 x 47 in. (153 x 119.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Dorothy Bobrow in memory of her sister, Thelma Lippman Scott; Mrs. George Liberman, Alice Topp Lee, and Mrs. Hans H. Zinsser, by exchange and Designated Purchase Fund, 2013.14. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.2013.14.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, CUR.2013.14.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2012
"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
RIGHTS STATEMENT
© Michael A. Cummings
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