A woman holds a young child in her arms. She is looking to her right. The child wears a had with a small tassel, the woman wears a cloak.

Mother and Child

Cadmus, Paul

1934

Artwork Information

  • Title:

    Mother and Child

  • Artist:

    Cadmus, Paul

  • Artist Bio:

    American, 1904–1999

  • Date:

    1934

  • Medium:

    Etching

  • Dimensions:

    4 3/8 x 3 1/2 inches

  • Credit Line:

    Wichita Art Museum, Gift of J. Eric Engstrom in memory of Hugh and Janice Chambers Ramsey, and son Robert

  • Object Number:

    2020.9.1

  • Display:

    Not Currently on Display

About the Artwork

One of the first artists employed by a New Deal art program, Paul Cadmus gained notoriety in 1934 when his painting The Fleet’s In! was removed from the Corcoran Art Gallery’s exhibition featuring New Deal art. The Fleet’s In! did not depict American sailors as heroic and valiant, but drunken and lecherous. The painting is emblematic of Cadmus’ view of American life—rather than celebrating American workers like many other artists in the 1930s and 1940s, Cadmus satirized them. Throughout his career, Cadmus courted controversy with his erotic and gritty images. Cadmus’ prints and paintings are in major museums throughout the country, from LACMA to the Whitney Museum of American Art. Mother and Child will be the second Cadmus print at WAM. Although Mother and Child is softer and more guileless than Cadmus’ trademark images, the print showcases his excellent draftsmanship, passion for depicting the body, and interest in Italian Renaissance precedents.