untitled

Deborah Dancy, artist

born 1949

Vermont Studio Center, publisher

Sarah Amos, printer

untitled, 2001

Where object was made: Johnson, Vermont, United States

Material/technique: color intaglio; collagraph; wove paper

Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 503 x 405 mm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 503 x 405 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 19 13/16 x 15 15/16 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 19 13/16 x 15 15/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 32 x 24 in

Credit line: Museum purchase: Elmer F. Pierson Fund

Accession number: 2002.0072

Not on display

Add to portfolio

If you wish to reproduce this image, please submit an image request

Images

Label texts

Brosseau Center for Learning: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Access

How did you get your name? This handwritten list of first names and shapes that mimic fingerprints represent the most basic parts of one’s identity. Deborah Muirhead uses genealogical research and African American history and literature to bring historical context to ancestral history. This connection can help restore a sense of identity to those who had their identities stolen.

The Object Speaks

Muirhead combines genealogical research and African American history and literature to create fictional narratives that investigate people who have been erased from history. In this print, handwritten first names and forms suggesting fingerprints evoke the obscured history of ancestors who were once enslaved, denied access to literacy, and likely given new names.