A bronze bust of a Black man emerging from a heavily textured background.

The Negro Looks Ahead

Richmond Barthé (1901-1989)

Date

1940, cast 1986
Object Type

Sculptures
Medium

Bronze on marble base
Contributors

Cast by The Art Foundry
Dimensions

16 x 10 x 10 in.
Edition

10/10
Inscriptions

signed, l.l.: Barthe 86 ©
Credit Line

Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas
Accession Number

2007.1
Copyright

Status undetermined

Barthé launched his career as a sculptor in New York City in the early 1930s during the height of the New Negro Movement—a golden age of expression in art, literature, music, and stage performance also known as the Harlem Renaissance.

Influenced by the sculptural conventions of Renaissance masters like Michelangelo, Barthé grounded his aesthetic vision in traditional notions of ideal beauty and expressive composition. Though he was primarily interested in the formal qualities of his work, he did not overlook racecentered themes, and this work celebrates the dignity and beauty of black Americans.

Location: On view

See more by Richmond Barthé

This information is published from the Carter's collection database. Updates and additions based on research and imaging activities are ongoing. The images, titles, and inscriptions are products of their time and are presented here as documentation, not as a reflection of the Carter’s values. If you have corrections or additional information about this object please email us to help us improve our records.

Every effort has been made to accurately determine the rights status of works and their images. Please email us if you have further information on the rights status of a work contrary or in addition to the information in our records.