Betye Saar

"Keep for Old Memiors"

1976

Pencil on paper, printed papers, and printed fabric sewn and pasted on fabric with lace, leaves, and feathers, mounted on painted frame with gloves

Not on view

Keep for Old Memiors is one of a series of assemblages she made with items that belonged to her great-aunt Hattie Parson Keys, who had died the previous year. “The letters, autographs, hankies, scraps of lace, and fabric are fragments from the past,” Saar said, “a sort of sentimental journey back when time moved slower and people collected memories.” Here, these elements are collaged into a picture frame caressed by two gloves.

Gallery label from

Betye Saar: The Legends of Black Girl’s Window, October 21, 2019–January 4, 2020

Medium Pencil on paper, printed papers, and printed fabric sewn and pasted on fabric with lace, leaves, and feathers, mounted on painted frame with gloves
Dimensions 15 1/2 x 13" (39.4 x 33 cm)
Credit Gift of Jo Carole and Ronald S. Lauder
Object number 57.2013
Department Painting & Sculpture

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Betye Saar

Betye Saar

American, born 1926 49 works online

In Betye Saar’s work, time is cyclical. History and experiences, emotion and knowledge travel across time and back again, linking the artist and viewers of her work with generations of people who came before them.

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