Betye Saar

Lo, The Pensive Peninsula

1961

Etching

Not on view

The natural landscape was a common subject of Saar’s early prints. Here, emotion pervades the scene, with soft bands of color filtering through the dense vegetation. The imagery was likely inspired by the artist’s visits to the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve outside Los Angeles. At the time, Saar lived in nearby Redondo Beach and took printmaking classes at California State University, Long Beach. This work was the first Saar formally exhibited, including it in her first group show, at the Palos Verdes Library Gallery in 1961.

Gallery label from

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

Medium Etching
Dimensions plate (slightly irreg.): 14 15/16 × 19 11/16" (38 × 50 cm); sheet (irreg.): 16 5/16 × 21 9/16" (41.5 × 54.7 cm)
Publisher Betye Saar, Los Angeles
Printer Betye Saar, Los Angeles
Edition 20
Credit The Candace King Weir Endowment for Women Artists
Object number 1166.2018
Department Drawings and Prints

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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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