Details

Title

Untitled (Woman with Red Fish)

Artist/Maker

Nellie Mae Rowe (American, 1900–1982)

Date

before 1978

Medium

Crayon and pencil on paper

Dimensions

18 x 24 inches

Credit

Gift of Andy Nasisse for the Nasisse Collection

Accession #

1993.60

Location

Currently not on view

A frequent character in Nellie Mae Rowe’s art is a large, bright fish. As a devout Christian, Rowe often illustrated her lifelong walk with the Lord and considered art making an act of prayer. Fish often symbolize the Christian faith as well as fertility and female sexuality. In this drawing of a fish in a fantastical sea, a female figure swims below at a distance, exemplifying reverence. Rowe was never able to have children, so this drawing may also serve as a reference to her reproductive struggles.

Image Copyright

© Estate of Nellie Mae Rowe/High Museum of Art, Atlanta.

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