252
Judy Chicago
Birth Tear/Tear
1985
Screenprint in colors, on Stonehenge paper, with full margins.
I. 24 x 35 in. (61 x 88.9 cm)
S. 30 x 40 in. (76.2 x 101.6 cm)
S. 30 x 40 in. (76.2 x 101.6 cm)
Signed, titled, dated and annotated 'color trial proof' in pencil (the edition was 75), published by ACA Galleries, New York, framed.
Full-Cataloguing
"The title, with the image, suggests layered meanings. The first 'tear' in the title refers to the perineal lacerations approximately half of birthing women experience. Usually such tears involve just the skin, but less often muscle is torn which is more serious and can lead to complications. The second 'tear' in the title refers to the conflict women can sometimes feel about the decision to become a parent. A tear seeps from the right eye of this figure as she strains to birth and nurture her children who cling to and grab for her. Chicago here avoids the usual sentimentality of the mother and child image." - The Birth Project, exhibition brochure text, Viki D. Thompson Wylder, MFA PhD, the Florida State University Museum of Fine Arts (FSU MoFA)