The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 12, 2024

Ritual II

Ritual II

2000
(American, b. 1965)
America, 21st century
collage and monotype
Image: 73.7 x 64.8 cm (29 x 25 1/2 in.)
Gift of Joan Tomkins and William Busta 2020.434
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

The artist who made this print is also a security guard at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Description

In Ritual II, Dexter Davis combined collage with monotype, drawing with ink on the plate, printing, and then applying collage elements to the surface of the paper in a chine-collé method. In the center of the expressively fragmented composition is a masked-figure, a recurring part of Davis’ visual vocabulary culled from African art. A snake wraps around the central figure while pushing down another masked head below. While the overall effect suggests trauma or suffering, Davis’s title leaves open the potential for ritual solace and healing.
  • 2000-?
    Dexter Davis (the artist) [1965-], Cleveland, OH
    ?-2020
    William Busta and Joan Tomkins, Cleveland, Heights, OH
    December 7, 2020
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Ritual II|url=false|author=Dexter Davis|year=2000|access-date=12 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2020.434