Name/Title
Beautiful AthleteEntry/Object ID
2017.3.3Description
In keeping with Dial’s focus on social issues such as inequality and relationships within the modern world, Beautiful Athlete portrays a nude female figure framed by two thin, elongated trees. Without distinct facial features, the figure remains ambiguous and is relatable to an array of audiences. Being raised by women, Dial reveres women as social figures of strength, power, and nurturing. He began drawing women in response to a journalist’s criticism of his first exhibited artworks; accusing Dial of being unable to draw and stating that his art was “crude”. He chooses to draw women as generalized and sexualized figures so that his drawings can speak through uses of allusion, affect, and ambiguity; portraying and appreciating women as figures of seduction as well as refuge.Artwork Details
Medium
Paper, Charcoal, PastelCollection
Southern Vernacular Art CollectionAcquisition
Accession
2017.3Source or Donor
Hill, Lou and CalynneAcquisition Method
GiftMade/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Dial, Thornton Sr.Role
ArtistDate made
1994Dimensions
Height
44-1/4 inWidth
29-7/8 inInterpretative Labels
Label
Thornton Dial, Sr. (1928-2016)
Thornton Dial, Sr. is the most famous vernacular artist from the Southeast, whose work has shattered the art world's notion of "folk" and "outsider" art. Although Dial has never had any education or art training and is from a rural town in Alabama, his work touches on themes of racial inequality, struggles in a modern world, and relationships between men and women, themes that resonate with audiences around the world.Created By
admin@catalogit.appCreate Date
January 25, 2017