


Artwork Images
Photo:
Controls
May 23, 1988 Monday, Sachse, TX
Object Details
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Date
2010
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Object Type
Drawings
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Medium
Graphite, foil, glitter on brown paper bag
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Dimensions
11 1/16 x 8 11/16 in.
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Inscriptions
Sheet, Recto:
u.l. handwritten in grahpite: "May 23, 1988 Monday, Sachse, TX," [underlined] \ Today was nice. We played ball, \ not long, about five minutes. \ ESTHER PEARL WATSON, 2010
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Credit Line
Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas, Anonymous gift
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Accession Number
2018.1
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Copyright
© 2010 Esther Pearl Watson
Object Description
Watson experienced an unconventional childhood shaped by her father’s obsessive quest to build a working flying saucer. His quixotic attempts, in which he created prototype after prototype in their yard, later served as the inspiration for Watson’s art. In stylized, narrative compositions derived from the visual conventions of self-taught, or “folk” art, she recounts her father’s efforts and their impact on her family.
Crafted on a paper bag, May 23, 1988 Monday, Sachse, TX, portrays a glittering silver saucer floating above a rural Texas landscape. A handwritten inscription accompanies the spacecraft: “Today was nice. We played ball, not long about five minutes.” The juxtaposition suggests how her father’s obsession marked even seemingly mundane activities, while also hinting at the tantalizing possibilities of interstellar wonders.
—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023)
Additional details
Location: Off view
See more by Esther Pearl Watson
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