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Litter, 1999
Kiki Smith (American, b. 1954)
Lithograph, with hand-applied platinum leaf; 22 1/8 x 29 7/8 in. (56.2 x 75.9 cm)
Signed and dated (lower right): Kiki Smith 1999; numbered (lower left): 13/50
Purchase, Reba and Dave Williams Gift, 2000 (2000.136)
© Kiki Smith

Description

This large lithograph was printed in cobalt-blue and white ink at Universal Limited Art Editions in West Islip, Long Island, New York. Published to benefit the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center, the print depicts a white cat in bird's-eye perspective. She is nursing a litter of four white kittens, which are nearly obscured by her fur. The mother cat's eyes and nose, two of her paws, and a nipple are highlighted with hand-applied platinum leaf. Like many of Smith's sculptures, including the wall-hung bronze Lilith at the Metropolitan (1994; acc. no. 1996.27), the subject concerns female sexuality. The work joins thirty-three intaglio prints and one Iris (ink-jet) print by Smith also in the Museum's collection.

(Entry written by Nan Rosenthal)

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