Louise Bourgeois. Youth (1941-1944)

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Cat. No. 418/X, variant 2

Youth

State/Variant:: State X of X, variant
Date:: 1941-1944

Alternate Title:: Jeunesse (Youth); Le Liseur (The Reader); Liseur + auditeur (Reader + listener)
Themes:: Architecture, Figures, Objects
Techniques:: Aquatint, Drypoint, Etching
Description:: Soft ground etching, drypoint, and aquatint
Support:: Smooth, laid Japanese paper
Dimensions:: plate: 5 1/16 x 7 7/16" (12.9 x 18.9 cm); sheet: 7 1/4 x 9 1/2" (18 x 24.2 cm)
Signature:: "Louise Bourgeois" lower left margin, pencil.
Inscription:: The alternate titles are derived from the artist's inscriptions on known impressions of this composition. The alternate title, "Le Liseur," derives from an inscription on an impression of state VI that is not in MoMA's Collection and is not included in the Evolving Composition Diagram below.
Publisher:: unpublished
Printer:: The artist
Edition:: 6 known variant impressions of state X
Impression:: Not numbered
Edition Information:: Not issued as a published edition at any state.

Although there are 18 known impressions of the various states of "Youth," 3 have the following impression numbers: 5/7, 5/7, and 1/10.

In 1990, the plate for state X of this composition was printed by Piero Crommelynck, Paris, to consider for inclusion in a portfolio of prints by Bourgeois from the 1940s to be reissued under the title, "Quarantania." That portfolio of nine plates was published by Galerie Lelong, Paris, later in 1990, but did not include "Youth" since its plate was too corroded. An example of a reprint is seen in the Evolving Composition Diagram below. The 6th known impression of state X is also a reprint.
State Changes and Additions:: Changes from state IX, in drypoint: rectilinear shape added to right of left figure; rectangular forms at lower right added; shading in crosses increased; hair of right figure thickened and lengthened.
Artist’s Remarks:: Though Bourgeois most often depicted daily activities during the 1940s, she occasionally introduced people from her earlier life. Here, Bourgeois said, are her father and her brother. "These are people I like... This is a family that is locked together, but totally isolated. They try to communicate, but they get nowhere." About the female figure she said: "She is desperate here because she listens, but perceives that she's not hearing. There is a difference between listening and hearing. It is the same today: not to hear and not to be heard. I am so preoccupied that I cannot hear, in spite of an enormous effort." About the female figure in the print, she added: "Maybe she is withdrawn because she doesn't have a child; she must be preoccupied with that." (Quotes cited in Wye, Deborah and Carol Smith. "The Prints of Louise Bourgeois." New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1994, p. 56.)
Curatorial Remarks:: Although aquatint is usually undertaken in print workshops with specialized equipment, Bourgeois used the technique at home. A loose sheet written by her in the 1940s includes notes on the steps and materials needed for making aquatints. (The Easton Foundation: LB-1833)

Additional known drawings relate to this composition but were not available for reproduction. They can be viewed on microfilm at the Archives of American Art, reel 90, frames 5 and 11.
Former Cat. No.:: W & S 18
MoMA Credit Line:: Gift of the artist
MoMA Accession Number:: 127.1990.2