Lucybelle Crater and her charmingly youthful mother-in-law, L.C.

Artist Ralph Eugene Meatyard (American, 1925 - 1972)

Dateca. 1969-1972

MediumGelatin silver print

DimensionsImage and sheet: 7 3/8 × 7 9/16 inches (18.73 × 19.21 cm)

Credit LineGift of Hallmark Cards, Inc.

Object number2005.27.1943

SignedArtist's stamp on mount verso, center, in black ink: "RALPH EUGENE MEATYARD. / Lexington, Kentucky / © "; Signed on mount verso, upper left, in blue pen: "Madelyn O. Meatyard"

InscribedOn mount recto, bottom, in black pen: "Lucybelle Crater and her charmingly youthful mother- / in-law Lucybelle Crater"

MarkingsOn mount verso, upper left corner, in black pen: "6"; On mount verso, bottom, in pencil: "205-128-00"

On View

Not on view

Collections

Photography

Terms

DescriptionImage of two women wearing jackets over their dresses and plastic Halloween masks. They are standing in the grass in front of a row of tall shrubs.Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Rotation 25. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, October 19, 2018- March 17, 2019, no cat.

Gallery Label

“Lucybelle Crater” was the fictitious creation of Ralph Eugene Meatyard. She served as the central figure of a 64-print album titled The Family Album of Lucybelle Crater. In this image, an outtake from the project, Meatyard’s wife, Madelyn, stands on the right, wearing the mask of an old hag, while her mother-in-law, who dons the mask of an old man, stands to the left. Meatyard’s use of masks serves to both obscure individual identity and connect subjects by hiding facial differences.

Provenance

Hallmark Cards, Inc., Kansas City, MO, 2000;
Given by Hallmark Cards, Inc. to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2005.

Information about a particular artwork or image, including provenance information, is based upon historic information and may not be currently accurate or complete. Research on artwork and images is an ongoing process, and the information about a particular artwork or image may not reflect the most current information available to the Museum. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about a particular artwork or image, please e-mail provenance@nelson-atkins.org.