Deborah Bell; Study for Unearthed

About this Item

Deborah Bell
South African 1957-
Study for Unearthed
signed and dated 2001 in pencil in the margin
mixed media with gouache on paper
75 by 55cm excluding frame; 94 by 74 by 2cm including frame

Notes

This artwork dates from the period leading up to Deborah Bell’s significant ‘Unearthed’ project, exhibited at the Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg, in 2001. It is based on a self-portrait the artist used time and again in her printing, paintings, and sculptures. Linda Givon called the ‘Unearthed’ exhibition “the essence of Deborah Bell”, evoking the act of excavation, of bringing to light the celestial and the sublime – themes that are central to Bell’s work.

See also Deborah Bell: Presence, Everard Read CIRCA, 17 March to 30 April 2011; Deborah Bell: Dreams of Immortality, Everard Read, 7 May to 27 June 2015; Deborah Bell: Enthroned, Everard Read, 2019. Contemporary Egyptian Figural Gouache Painting Portrait South African