Jean Battles Irvin Original Mixed Media Drawing "The Forgotten Rite"

Item Details

A vintage original mixed media drawing with gouache, graphite, colored pencil, silk fiber, feathers, and felt tip marker among other elements titled The Forgotten Rite, dated 1985, by American artist Jean Battles Irvin (Michigan, 20th century). The image is a complex, organized layering of the various media on a two-dimensional plane; human figures comprised of negative shapes and meticulously placed colored pencil contour lines converse with one another amidst a lavender checkerboard, with the addition of a three-dimensional box carefully constructed with acrylic glass and adhered to the surface of the acrylic glass that protects the framed portion of the piece. Furthermore, a silken thread-wrapped necklace of multiple colors finishes the piece, staying in place by threading its way through the three dimensional components. A dusty rose-colored crocheted fragment of fabric occupies the necklace like a snake on a draping vine. The date and artist signature are signed in pencil along the lower edge of the two-dimensional portion. This fascinating work is mounted in a simple blonde wood frame with a hanging wire to the verso. A label to the verso indicates title, media and artist.

Irvin calls her art Femmage, which she describes as a collaged form created by a woman utilizing things that women routinely collect, such as buttons, string, lace, old stamps and photos. Irvin says words, letters, calligraphy and poetry are also characteristic additions to a work of Femmage. She attests that her work contains a deep, mysterious, subliminal sexual content, that sometimes takes the shape of pockets, boxes and enclosures.

Condition

- dried residue on acrylic glass, possibly intentional. Frame is lightly worn.

Dimensions

Item #

16CIN313-074