-
Artworks
Lyle Ashton Harris American, b. 1965
Coquette, 1987-1988Silver gelatin printFramed Dimensions:
37 1/2 x 26 3/4 x 1 3/4 inches
(95.3 x 67.9 x 4.4 cm)
Image Dimensions:
30 x 20 inches
(76.2 x 50.8 cm)Edition 4 of 10, 2 APsFurther images
A bare-chested female model in whiteface looks coyly towards the viewer. The image recalls the harlequin figure and minstrel shows in reverse: blackface becomes whiteface. Whiteface originated in the 19th...A bare-chested female model in whiteface looks coyly towards the viewer. The image recalls the harlequin figure and minstrel shows in reverse: blackface becomes whiteface. Whiteface originated in the 19th century through vaudeville and minstrelsy where it portrayed "an American racial archetype [that] reflected the racial and sexual anxieties that often accompanied the public discourse of race" noted curator Okwui Enwezor in Lyle Ashton Harris: Excessive Exposure, The Complete Chocolate Portraits. The term "coquette" is not one of flattery, but a flirt who knows how to manipulate to get what she wants.
3of 3
