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Two women standing and smiling in front of a framed painting in a gallery. One has curly gray hair, wearing a patterned skirt; the other has straight brown hair, wearing a sleeveless top.
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National Museum of Women in the Arts

Cotton to Hair

Close up of Cotton to Hair

A black framed sculpture of a branch of a cotton plant against a white background. The stem of the plant is bronze, and splits to lead to two bolls at its top. The right boll is made of cotton, while the left boll is made of black, curly hair.
A black framed sculpture of a branch of a cotton plant against a white background. The stem of the plant is bronze, and splits to lead to two bolls at its top. The right boll is made of cotton, while the left boll is made of black, curly hair.
Sonya Clark, Cotton to Hair, 2009; Bronze, human hair, and cotton, 14 1/2 x 12 1/2 x 5 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Heather and Tony Podesta Collection; © Sonya Clark; Photo by Lee Stalsworth

Artwork Details

  • Artist

    Sonya Clark

  • Title

    Cotton to Hair

  • Date

    2009

  • Medium

    Bronze, human hair, and cotton

  • Dimensions

    14 1/2 x 12 1/2 x 5 in.

  • Donor Credit

    Gift of Heather and Tony Podesta Collection

  • Image Credit

    © Sonya Clark; Photo by Lee Stalsworth

  • On Display

    No

The Artist, Sonya Clark

Textile artist Sonya Clark interweaves craft, history, and race to create mixed-media works that celebrate Blackness and address racial tensions and stereotypes.
A woman with medium-dark skin tone and short black hair smiles into the camera. She wears black glasses, a white and yellow knit top and gold earrings.