
Cat. No. 247/I
Umbilical Cord
- State/Variant:
- State I of IX
- Date:
- 2000
- Themes
- Figures, Motherhood & Family
- Techniques
- Other Techniques
- Support:
- Smooth, wove paper
- Dimensions:
- plate: 10 7/8 x 8 3/8" (27.7 x 21.3 cm); sheet: 15 1/4 x 11 1/4" (38.8 x 28.5 cm)
- Signature:
- Not signed
- Publisher
- unpublished
- Printer
- Sarah V
- Edition:
- 1 known impression of state I
- Edition Information:
- Proof before the editioning of state VIII on fabric.
- Impression:
- Not numbered
- Background:
- "Umbilical Cord" relates to a monumental installation for the inaugural exhibition in Tate Modern's Turbine Hall in 2000. The installation consisted of "Maman," a 30' steel sculpture of a spider, and "I Do, I Undo, I Redo," three steel towers ranging in height from 42' to 57'. Each tower contained a different sculpture of a mother and child inside a bell jar. The sculpture in the tower titled, "I Redo," featured a mother and child attached by an umbilical cord. Bourgeois also made another related print called "Do Not Abandon Me," 2000, which includes a similar mother and child.
- Description:
- Roulette, with red pencil additions
- State Changes and Additions:
- Additions in red pencil: reinforced overall, anticipating state II.
- Other Remarks:
- According to Felix Harlan of Harlan & Weaver print workshop, Bourgeois initially worked with printer Sarah V on this project. In state I, Sarah V transferred the composition onto the plate using a roulette. Bourgeois then asked Harlan & Weaver to hire Sarah V as a workshop printer in order to carry on with this project. The subsequent states were done under the auspices of Harlan & Weaver and, thus, they are credited as printer.
- MoMA Credit Line:
- Gift of the artist
- MoMA Accession Number:
- 1006.2008
© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY

Open to compare works


Select a work in the diagram below
State I of IX
2000
A
B
Umbilical Cord
2000-2002
States
Related Works in the Catalogue
Related Works in Other Mediums

Not in MoMA's Collection

Do Not Abandon Me
1999
Not in MoMA's Collection

Do Not Abandon Me
1999
Medium: Fabric and thread
Dimensions: overall: 4 3/4 x 20 1/2 x 8 1/2" (12.1 x 52.1 x 21.6 cm)
© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY

Not in MoMA's Collection

I Redo (interior component), from the 3-part installation, I Do, I Undo, I Redo
1999-2000
Not in MoMA's Collection

I Redo (interior component), from the 3-part installation, I Do, I Undo, I Redo
1999-2000
Medium: Steel, glass, wood, and tapestry
Dimensions: overall: 19 1/2 × 12 1/2 × 12 1/2" (49.5 × 31.8 × 31.8 cm); "I Redo" overall (not shown): 57' 4" x 29' 5" x 19' 7" (17.5 x 9 x 6 m)
© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY

Not in MoMA's Collection

The Umbilical Cord
2008
Not in MoMA's Collection

The Umbilical Cord
2008
Medium: Gouache on paper
Dimensions: sheet: 12 1/4 x 10" (31.1 x 25.4 cm)
© The Easton Foundation/VAGA at ARS, NY