Black Contemporary American Artists : Betye Saar

Betye Saar is most known for her assemblage works, particularly her Liberation of Aunt Jemima piece. Saar was born in 1926 in Los Angeles, California. She earned her degree in Design from UCLA in 1947 and later taking graduate courses from CSULB, USC, and CSUN. Saar’s earliest works were etching prints. She describes her body of work as narrative in nature and later would begin “inserting her own prints and drawings into window frames, as with Black Girl’s Window, an iconic autobiographical work that also signaled a new interest in addressing race and contemporary events in her art.” After the tragic assassination of Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr., Saar’s work has been described as “radical” in nature as she began addressing head-on issues such as racism and oppression. In her recent work, Saar has found inspiration in mystical and occult symbolism. At age 96 she is still a force in the art world, exhibiting and teaching. Saar is the recipient of multiple awards, most recently Germany’s Wolfgang Hahn Prize in 2020.

Adler, E. (2019). Betye Saar. Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved January 24, 2023 from https://www.moma.org/artists/5102.
Saar, B. (2014). Bio. Betty Saar. Retrieved January 23, 2023 from http://www.betyesaar.net/.
Images:
Betye Saar, The Liberation of Aunt Jemima, 1972, assemblage, 11.75 x 8.75 in, Berkeley Art Museum, https://smarthistory.org/betye-saar-liberation-aunt-jemima/
Betye Saar, The Wounded Wilderness,1962, etching with relief printing, 25 9/16 × 16 5/8 in, Museum of Modern Art, https://www.moma.org/collection/works/284135?artist_id=5102&page=1&sov_referrer=artist
Lezley Saar, Betye Saar (portrait), photograph, 1972, Hammer Museum,  https://hammer.ucla.edu/now-dig-this/artists/betye-saar