Ann Agee Willowy Silhouette Madonna 2023

Identification
Title
Willowy Silhouette Madonna
Production Date
2023
Object Number
2024.022
Credit Line
Collection Pérez Art Museum Miami, museum purchase with funds provided by PAMM’s Collectors Council
Copyright
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Physical Qualities
Medium
Stoneware with colored slip and porcelain slip
Dimensions
32 1/2 x 24 x 16 inches
Visual Description
Willowy Silhouette Madonna is a sculpture by artist Ann Agee created in 2023. It measures about two and a half feet tall, by two feet wide around. Its longest dimension is vertical. It is made of ceramic, more specifically of stoneware with colored porcelain slip. The sculpture depicts the figure of a seated mother holding her child on her lap. The pose is reminiscent of a religious Madonna and Child motif, hence the name “Madonna” in the title. The figures are not anatomically accurate; they are stylized to look boxy in structure, and they lack aspects like facial features and lifelike skin. The entire sculpture, both figures and pedestal/seat, is one uniform color and pattern. It is a dark metallic blue grey with rows of small silver colored polka dots. The dots may resemble rows of metal bolts, which also gives the boxy sculpture a robotic essence. The mother is reclining backwards to the right with her right arm held vertically down to support her weight on the seat. Her left arm reaches leftwards horizontally to support the back of her child, which is standing and sitting on her lap. Her overall pose is one which conveys confidence and relaxation. There is also a hint from the sculptor in the form that she is wearing sandals– with a strap covering her boxy foot– further adding to her nonchalant and easygoing confidence. Both figures appear to be unclothed, and the mother seems to have bare breasts. The structure of the figures is highly segmented between individual body parts, giving the impression like they are made of adjoined flat pieces. The child mirrors the pose of his mother, also reclining backwards into her outstretched arm. He is supported in three points by his mother’s body (one of her arms and both legs) implying the close bond and support system between them.
Ann Agee

Ann Agee

b. 1959, Philadelphia; lives in New York

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