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Washington University in St. Louis
Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts

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Kara Walker

Klaus Bürgel

Golddigger

2003

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Produced as a collaboration between Kara Walker and her then-partner, the jeweler Klaus Bürgel, this mixed-media work comprises a display case containing tiny gold replicas of instruments used to keep slave women captive. The typewritten placards on the base of the work describe the three miniature gold facsimiles of a type of collar or yoke—tall headpieces with curved hooks extending to the sides and towering tiers of bells. The work was commissioned for the 2003 exhibition Black President: The Art and Legacy of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York. Fela was a Nigerian activist and musical pioneer who founded Afrobeat, a music rooted in protest and social critique that has inspired musicians and visual artists alike. [Permanent collection label, 2016]

  • Artist Kara Walker (American, b. 1969)
    Klaus Bürgel (German, b. 1958)
  • Title Golddigger
  • Date 2003
  • Medium 22k gold and mixed media
  • Edition description 2/10
  • Dimensions overall | 64 1/4 x 17 x 17 in.
    object size | a.) 2 3/8 x 1 3/8 x 1 1/16 in.
    mount | a. base) 7/16 x 1 in.
    object size | b.) 1 1/4 x 1 7/16 in.
    object size | c.) 4 x 3 x 7/8 in.
    mount | c. base) 13/16 x 1 in.
  • Credit line Gift of Peter Norton, 2015
  • Object number 36.2015

Truths and Reckonings: The Art of Transformative Racial Justice
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 02/07/2020 - 04/18/2020

Rotation 1: Contemporary Art from the Peter Norton Gift
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 05/01/2015 - 08/02/2015

Received 3/23/2015
Peter Norton (Los Angeles, CA)

This artwork record may be incomplete or need refinement. Our staff actively researches the collection and revises records when new information is available. If you have questions or comments about this record, please contact us.

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