The Los Angeles art community was mourning Betye Saar Monday after the pioneering member of the 1960s and \u201970s Black Art Movement died a few days short of her 100th birthday.<\/p>\n
Saar died in her sleep on Sunday in Los Angeles, according to Roberts Project, the local gallery that represented her.<\/p>\n
\u201cA pioneering artist and a leading figure in the assemblage movement, Betye Saar will be remembered for a body of work that powerfully interrogated African American identity, spirituality and the intersections between diverse cultures,\u201d the gallery said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmerging as a vital voice during the Black Arts Movement and second-wave feminism of the late 1960s and 1970s, Saar utilized found objects, family heirlooms and vintage ephemera to explore themes of race, gender and historical memory. Her practice transformed everyday items into groundbreaking artworks and installations, cementing her legacy as one of the most influential artists of our time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among Saar\u2019s most iconic works is her 1972 assemblage, \u201cThe Liberation of Aunt Jemima,\u201d which placed a stereotypical \u201cmammy\u201d figure holding a broom and a rifle, \u201ctransforming a symbol of servitude into a warrior of Black liberation,\u201d Roberts Project said.<\/p>\n
Another foundational work, 1969\u2019s \u201cBlack Girl\u2019s Window\u201d, utilized an old window frame as a structural device to merge autobiographical elements with mysticism and racial identity.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are deeply saddened by the passing of Betye Saar, whose practice transformed contemporary art and inspired generations of artists,\u201d the Los Angeles County Museum of Art said in a social media post. \u201cWe are honored to share her work with our visitors and extend our heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, and all who celebrate her extraordinary legacy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saar grew up in Pasadena and joined a community of Black artists in nearby Altadena in the late 1960s and early \u201970s.<\/p>\n
Her seven-decade career has been the subject of numerous exhibitions at museums around the world, and her work is represented in the collections of more than 90 institutions globally.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a difficult one for me to process, my heart is extremely heavy,\u201d said Milton Bowens, an Oakland-born artist and co-curator of Gallery 157 in Alabama. \u201cThe incomparable Betye Saar has passed. Her powerful work changed my entire understanding of fine art. A key figure in the Black Arts Movement of the 1970s, she stood second to none! Prayers to her family.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou will be missed, but rest assured your influence will forever continue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saar\u2019s work can currently be seen in \u201cBetye Saar: Drifting Toward Twilight\u201d at the Huntington Library and Art Museum through Nov. 30, 2027, and \u201cLet\u2019s Get It On: The Wearable Art of Betye Saar,\u201d on view at Roberts Projects Los Angeles through Aug. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n
Saar is survived by her three daughters, several grandchildren, and her red footed tortoise Rojo, the gallery said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Los Angeles art community was mourning Betye Saar Monday after the pioneering member of the 1960s and…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":632582,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5123],"tags":[8067,387470,1582,276,51252,2961,224,5337,60201,387471],"class_list":["post-964020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-artist","tag-betye","tag-ca","tag-california","tag-dies","tag-la","tag-los-angeles","tag-losangeles","tag-pioneering","tag-saar"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116996073605518711","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/964020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=964020"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/964020\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/632582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=964020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=964020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=964020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}