Details

Title

First African American Family and President in the White House

Artist/Maker

Mary Proctor (American, born 1960)

Date

2008-2016

Medium

Paint and mixed media on wood

Dimensions

92 × 39 inches

Credit

Gift of Carl and Marian Mullis

Accession #

2018.188

Location

On View - Stent Family Wing, Skyway, Gallery 408

The first artworks Mary Proctor ever made were three paintings on doors dedicated to members of her family who had died in a house fire. This tragic event was a turning point in Proctor’s life and motivated her feverish production of art on all sorts of architectural and other found surfaces. In this door painting, Proctor memorializes the first African American U.S. president and his family through bright patriotic color splashes and riffs on President Obama’s signature motto, “Yes We Can.”

Image Copyright

© (c) Mary L. Proctor