Blues Dance
Maker
born 1959
Title
Blues Dance
Date of Production
2023
Medium
Pastel, watercolour and gouache on paper
Dimensions
Height: 1982 mm (Frame size)
Width: 1364 mm (Frame size)
Width: 1364 mm (Frame size)
Accession Number
D.2024.XX.1
Mode of Acquisition
purchase, 2024
Credit
The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust), purchased with support from The Garcia Family Foundation, 2024.
Copyright
© Claudette Johnson
Location
Not currently on display
Label Text
In her monumentally-scaled drawings, Claudette Johnson strives to create a new presence for Black figures in the visual arts. Some are made from life, while others emerge from found images that she is particularly drawn to. This work, made for her solo exhibition at the Courtauld in 2023, was inspired by a 1979 photograph of a woman dancing in a Wolverhampton youth club, though Johnson situates her instead in an abstracted, minimal setting. The drawing is imbued with Johnson’s own memories of being part of the Blue Beat reggae dance scene in the 1980s, when dances were often held in people’s homes, as well as referring to the great tradition of Blues music. The title also alludes to the undulating blue tones of the figure’s dress and Johnson’s desire ‘to make the blues move in the work.’
Provenance
Made by the artist for the exhibition ‘Claudette Johnson: Presence’ (The Courtauld, 29 September 2023 - 14 January 2024); purchased through the artist’s gallery, Hollybush Gardens, London, 2024.
Exhibition History
Turner Prize 2024, Tate Britain, London, 25/09/2024-16/02/2025
Claudette Johnson: Darker Than Blue, Barber Institute of Fine Arts, Birmingham, 22/06/2024-15/09/2024
Claudette Johnson: Darker Than Blue, Barber Institute of Fine Arts, Birmingham, 22/06/2024-15/09/2024
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