Artwork Details
16 x 16 x 5/8 in.
Accession NumberGift of Ann M. Stack, acquired through Art for Today 2002, an exhibition organized by the Contemporary Art Society
CopyrightProvenance
Provenance
Ann M. and Chris Stack, Indianapolis, Indiana; given to the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 2001.
Gallery Labels
Gallery Labels
John Currin is one of the most highly original figural painters working today. His figures are inspired by a wide range of sources, from Old Master paintings to Norman Rockwell, often underpinned by a sense of humor rather than seriousness. Blond Angel depicts an idealized woman who is also somewhat unsettling, an arresting combination calculated to draw the viewer into a prolonged contemplation of her distinctive face.
This work by John Currin depicts a portrait of a young woman, who we can assume from the title to be an angel. Her cherubic features and innocent expression, coupled with the Currin’s softened color palette and paint application, recalls religious paintings made during the Renaissance.
One of the most original figurative painters working today, Currin takes inspiration from a variety of sources, ranging from Old Masters to Norman Rockwell and 1950s women’s magazine advertisements. Mixing together references from high and low culture, a sense of humor underpins his works. The results are often perverse, as with
Blond Angel, whose subtle and ambiguously sexualized portrait appears unsettling, despite her angelic qualities.Content Disclaimer and Usage Rights
Metadata about the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s collection comes from Newfields’ records and research. In some cases, information may be incomplete and research is ongoing. Newfields’ goal is to have as up-to-date metadata as possible, therefore, this information is subject to change. Newfields collections’ metadata is available under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) waiver, which allows for re-use without legal restrictions.
Artworks that appear in the image file(s) above may be in copyright or have other legal and/or cultural restrictions to their use. For clarity, Newfields does not claim copyright to the image files created by Newfields of artworks in the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s collection. Newfields makes every effort to ascertain the copyright status of artworks in the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s collection. Please refer to the RightsStatements.org statement above for information about the current copyright status of the artwork. Additionally, some artworks may include Local Context’s Notices or Labels that attribute cultural authority of the artwork’s heritage and data.
Additional information about Newfields’ reproduction guidelines can be found in the Licensing Resources.