Cat. No. 441/V

Paternity, plate 12 of 14, from the portfolio, Autobiographical Series

State/Variant:: State V of V
Date:: 1994
Portfolio:: Autobiographical Series

Themes: Figures, Motherhood & Family, Objects
Techniques: Drypoint
Support:: Smooth, wove Somerset paper
Dimensions:: plate: 4 3/4 x 8 15/16" (12 x 22.7 cm); sheet: 13 3/8 x 22 5/8" (34 x 57.4 cm)
Signature:: "LB" lower right margin, pencil.
Publisher: Peter Blum Edition
Printer: Harlan & Weaver
Edition:: 35; plus 10 H.C.
Impression:: "III/X" lower left margin, pencil, unknown hand.
Background:: Bourgeois was often inspired by the subjects of early drawings when creating works at much later dates. This 1994 portfolio is an example of a project based primarily on drawings from the 1940s and referring to her life in New York at that time. The exceptions are as follows: plate 1, based on a drawing from 1986 that references childbirth; plates 4 and 9, based on drawings from the 1940s but depicting memories of her childhood years in France; plate 11, most probably based on a drawing from the 1940s of a European hotel desk.

Bourgeois was married to American art historian, Robert Goldwater. The couple had three children: Michel, Jean-Louis, and Alain.
Curatorial Remarks:: Jerry Gorovoy is the artist's assistant.

The source drawing for this work was not available for reproduction. It can, however, be viewed on microfilm at the Archives of American Art, reel 90, frame 105.

Of the 14 plates in "Autobiographical Series," Bourgeois titled this plate and plate 6. The untitled plates have been assigned descriptive titles for cataloguing purposes.
Description:: Drypoint
State Changes and Additions:: Change from state IV, in drypoint: baby’s face added.
Artist’s Remarks:: Inscribed on state I: "Life itself / growth of the plant / growth of the child / l'image d'epinal." left upper margin, pencil, artist's hand; "supress the / picture" right middle margin, pencil, artist's hand; "paternity" lower right margin, pencil, artist's hand; "[illeg.] / madonna and child / turned into Robt (Paternity) / Robt is put on a pedestal / I take care of the 2nd best / who is older Michel is five / [illeg.]" lower middle margin, pencil, artist's hand; "Robert was taking care of Jean-Louis as a Baby / 333 E. 41st Tudor City" lower middle margin, pencil, Jerry Gorovoy's hand.
Installation Remarks:: The prints in this portfolio can be shown as a group or individually. There is no required sequence.
Bibliography:: Malbert, Roger, and Juliet Mitchell. "Louise Bourgeois: Autobiographical Prints." London: Hayward, 2016. (Catalogue accompanying the touring exhibition "Louise Bourgeois Prints: Autobiographical Series and 11 Drypoints".)
MoMA Credit Line:: Gift of the artist
MoMA Accession Number:: 74.1997.12
This Work in Other Collections:: Kunstmuseum Bern, Switzerland
Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal, Québec
Museu da Gravura Cidade de Curitiba, Brazil
Tate Modern, London