Label Type
Cultural/Historical ContextLabel
The Peter Norton Family Christmas Project is the creation of software entrepreneur Peter Norton. Since 1988 Mr. Norton has commissioned an artist to create an edition (in quantities from 2,500 to 5,000) of sculptural objects or books. These editions are then mailed out to friends and various curators, directors and others in the artworld in lieu of a holiday card.Label Type
Mystery MondayLabel
Happy Monday everyone, continuing our celebration of Black History Month, can you name this American artist who made history by being the first BIPOC American woman to have a solo exhibition at the Venice Biennale? #purduegalleries #BlackHistoryMonth #BHM
The answer is Lorna Simpson (b. 1960). Simpson is a multimedia artist and photographer. She has produced several large projects using found photographic archives such as her 2009 series 1957-2009 where she reproduced images from an archive of unknown Black models from the 1950s. Her work deals with issues faced by Black women including identity, beauty, and trauma. She often complicates her works using text along with imagery. She received her BFA from NYU School of Visual of Visual Arts and her MFA from the University of California San Diego. Her work transcends traditional genres, touching concept art, photography, found art, documentary photography, and activist art.
This piece is part of the Peter Norton Family Christmas Project. Norton made his fortune as a software engineer and with his first wife, Eileen Harris, became one of the foremost collectors of contemporary art. The Peter Norton Family Foundation focuses on supporting contemporary visual arts and diversity in contemporary art. Begun in 1989 and running until 2017, the Christmas Project selected a contemporary artist each year to produce a unique work in a set of 5,000 that would be distributed to friends, family, and museums. This was the 1994 entry featuring three wishbones made with ceramic, rubber, and rubber in a box. Wishbones by nature are meant to be snapped but Simpson’s use of different mediums creates a play on the idea of fragility and strength.
Artist: Lorna Simpson (b. 1960), American
III (Three Wishbones)
1994
Bronze, Ceramic, Rubber, Felt, Wood
Peter Norton Family Foundation
2009.08.02