Welcome to MoMA.org. To take full advantage of all the site’s features, including the option to save works in the collection, please upgrade your browser to Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, or Internet Explorer 9. See our help page for more information.
Drypoint, with red and black ink, pencil, and white gouache additions
Support:
Smooth, wove paper
Dimensions:
plate: 11 7/16 x 8 15/16" (29 x 22.7 cm); sheet: 15 9/16 x 11 1/8" (39.5 x 28.3 cm)
Signature:
"LB" right lower margin, black ink.
Inscription:
Verso: "porte Bonheur / georges + Henriete aux coccinelles lady bug [drawing of a ladybug] / les Coccinelles [drawing of a ladybug] / Francoise Sagan: Bonjour tristesse" lower center sheet, pencil, artist's hand.
Changes from state I in drypoint: outlines reinforced overall, leaving deep burr. Additions in red ink: body shaded and hair delineated, anticipating changes in state IV. Additions in white gouache: rounded shape to right of head masked out, anticipating changes in state IV.
Other Remarks:
According to the artist's assistant, Jerry Gorovoy, and printer Felix Harlan, the source for this print is the 1984 sculpture, "Spiral Woman." Harlan says that the closely related drawing from 2002 (seen below in Related Works in Other Mediums) was probably taken from an impression of the print. Bourgeois also made a photocopy of the drawing with hand additions. Both were made as part of the artist's working process midway through the platemaking.
If you are interested in reproducing images from The Museum of Modern Art web site, please visit the Image Permissions page (www.moma.org/permissions). For additional information about using content from MoMA.org, please visit About this Site (www.moma.org/site).