Counting
- Date
- 1991
- Material
- Photogravure and screenprint
- printed in
- New York, New York, United States, North and Central America
- Classification
- Photographs
- Collection
- Prints, Drawings, and Photographs
- Current Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 73 3/4 x 38 in. (187.3 x 96.5 cm)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Jimmy and Debora Kellom, for Chloé
- Rights
- © Lorna Simpson
- Object Number
- 41:2004
NOTES
Counting makes use of fragmented images and phrases to present ideas about African American history and gender. Lorna Simpson comments on the social and economic plight of the anonymous female figure in the top photograph by pairing her with numbers that appear to be impossible work shifts. The phrase "310 years ago" alludes to the time when the smokehouse in the central image was used as living quarters for enslaved Africans. Simpson omits many details from the apparent narrative, allowing each viewer to make his or her own connections.
Provenance
Branstead Studio, New York, NY, representing Lorna Simpson
William Shearburn Gallery, St. Louis, MO, purchased from Branstead Studio [1]
- 2004
Jimmy and Debora Kellom, purchased from William Shearburn Gallery [2]
2004 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, gift of Jimmy and Debora Kellom [3]
Notes:
[1] In a telephone conversation with Saint Louis Art Museum Research Assistant Valerie Rudy on August 12, 2004, William Shearburn stated that he bought the work directly from the printer [Provenance Due Diligence Checklist, SLAM document files]
[2] Jimmy and Debora Kellom purchased the work from William Shearburn Gallery [Deed of Gift dated September 13, 2004, SLAM document files]
[3] See [2]. Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 28, 2004.
William Shearburn Gallery, St. Louis, MO, purchased from Branstead Studio [1]
- 2004
Jimmy and Debora Kellom, purchased from William Shearburn Gallery [2]
2004 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, gift of Jimmy and Debora Kellom [3]
Notes:
[1] In a telephone conversation with Saint Louis Art Museum Research Assistant Valerie Rudy on August 12, 2004, William Shearburn stated that he bought the work directly from the printer [Provenance Due Diligence Checklist, SLAM document files]
[2] Jimmy and Debora Kellom purchased the work from William Shearburn Gallery [Deed of Gift dated September 13, 2004, SLAM document files]
[3] See [2]. Minutes of the Collections Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 28, 2004.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.