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Why Born Enslaved!

Workshop of Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux French
modeled 1868, cast 1872
Not on view
While Carpeaux used terracotta for preparatory models, such as his clay sketch of the unidentified woman who posed for Why Born Enslaved!, the medium also had commercial applications. This bust was not sculpted by Carpeaux but was instead cast from a mold in his studio, which from 1869 onward produced copies of his major works as luxury consumer goods. The commercial viability of these reproductions reflected the popularity of antislavery imagery in post-emancipation France, where narratives of abolition evoked a sense of patriotism. This was particularly the case after the United States abolished slavery in 1865, seventeen years after the French abolition.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Why Born Enslaved!
  • Artist: Workshop of Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux (French, Valenciennes 1827–1875 Courbevoie)
  • Date: modeled 1868, cast 1872
  • Culture: French, Auteuil
  • Medium: Terracotta
  • Dimensions: confirmed: 21 1/8 × 17 1/2 × 13 3/4 in. (53.7 × 44.5 × 34.9 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Gift of James S. Deely, in memory of Patricia Johnson Deely, 1997
  • Object Number: 1997.491
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

More Artwork

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Why Born Enslaved!, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux French, Marble, French
Why Born Enslaved!
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux
modeled 1868, carved 1873
Boy crying, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux French, Cast terracotta, French, Paris
Boy crying
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux
1870–72
Model for the Watteau Fountain, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux French, Patinated plaster, French
Model for the Watteau Fountain
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux
ca. 1867–68
Study for the Ugolino Group, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux French, Graphite
Study for the Ugolino Group
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux
19th century
Bacchante with vine leaves, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux French, Terracotta; marble base, French
Bacchante with vine leaves
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux
ca. 1872–75

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