The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 23, 2024

Mr. X

Mr. X

c. 1937–38
(American, 1892–1965)
America, 20th century
carborundum print
Platemark: 16.6 x 13.2 cm (6 9/16 x 5 3/16 in.); Sheet: 24 x 21.9 cm (9 7/16 x 8 5/8 in.)
John L. Severance Fund 1996.277
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Dox Thrash used this print to debut his new carborundum printmaking technique to the public in a 1938 exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Description

The first African American artist to work at Philadelphia's Fine Print Workshop, Dox Thrash is known for inventing carborundum printmaking, the technique used here. A coarsely grained industrial product was burnished to create grays and highlights alongside rich, dark tones. This print, a self-portrait, was the first that Thrash made using his new and experimental technique. The artist looks slightly upward, boldly and directly, from within a stark field of black.
  • ?-1996
    (Dolan/Maxwell, Inc., Philadelphia, PA)
    September 16, 1996
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Currents and Constellations: Black Art in Focus. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 20-June 26, 2022).
    Our Stories: African American Prints and Drawings. Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (January 26 - May 18, 2014).
    The Great Migration: The Evolution of African American Art, 1790-1945. Taft Museum of Art, Cincinnati, OH (organizer) (June 16-October 22, 2000).
  • {{cite web|title=Mr. X|url=false|author=Dox Thrash|year=c. 1937–38|access-date=23 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1996.277