About this artwork
Constructed of dense, thick layers of paint, Cabin in the Cotton exemplifies the tactile and vivid style of selftaught artist Horace Pippin. At a southern homestead, an older woman cares for a young child. Beyond, an expansive field of cotton evokes the hard labor, likely that of family members, required to harvest the crop. Pippin turned to painting as a mode of rehabilitation after injuring his arm while serving in World War I. Born in Pennsylvania, the artist’s interpretation of cotton fields drew upon a visit to South Carolina with his regiment in 1917. Popular culture also may have informed his work: “Cabin in the Cotton” was the title of both a song and a film in the 1930s. On view in a shoe repair shop outside Philadelphia in 1937, the composition caught the attention of artists, critics, and gallerists, winning Pippin wide acclaim and furthering his career.
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Arts of the Americas
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Artist
- Horace Pippin
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Title
- Cabin in the Cotton
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Place
- United States (Artist's nationality:)
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Date
- c. 1931–1937
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Medium
- Oil on cotton, mounted on Masonite
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Inscriptions
- Signed recto, bottom-right, on grass, in yellow pigment: "H. PIPPIN".
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Dimensions
- 51 × 85 cm (20 × 33 1/2 in.)
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Credit Line
- Purchased with funds provided by Thomas F. Pick and Mary P. Hines in memory of their mother Frances W. Pick
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Reference Number
- 1990.417
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/111617/manifest.json