Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception

Martín Ramírez, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, ca. 1953, crayon, pencil, and colored pencil on joined papers, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.193
Martín Ramírez, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, ca. 1953, crayon, pencil, and colored pencil on joined papers, 71 x 24 1⁄8 in. (180.4 x 61.3 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.193

Artwork Details

Title
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
Artist
Date
ca. 1953
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
71 x 24 1⁄8 in. (180.4 x 61.3 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson
Mediums
Mediums Description
crayon, pencil, and colored pencil on joined papers
Classifications
Subjects
  • Religion — New Testament — Mary
  • Animal — reptile — snake
Object Number
1986.65.193
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1986.65.193

Artwork Description

Martín Ramírez was among many Mexicans lured to America in the 1920s by the promise of work. He made the journey by train and worked on the railroads and in mines for some time. But, in 1931, he was detained for vagrancy and subsequently admitted to a psychiatric hospital, where he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He spent the remaining thirty-two years of his life institutionalized. Around 1950, he began to draw images that combine memories of his homeland and his Catholic faith with highly abstracted forms, evoking a profound sense of displacement and loss.

Works by this artist (4 items)

Martín Ramírez, Soldado with American Flag, ca. 1950-1953, crayon, watercolor, pencil on various papers, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.194
Soldado with American Flag
Artist
Dateca. 1950-1953
crayon, watercolor, pencil on various papers
Not on view
Martín Ramírez, Untitled (Chorus Line), ca. 1950, watercolor, crayon and pencil on joined papers, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr., 1991.96.4R
Untitled (Chorus Line)
Artist
Dateca. 1950
watercolor, crayon and pencil on joined papers
Not on view
Martín Ramírez, Untitled (Church), ca. 1950, crayon, pencil, and watercolor on various joined papers, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.192
Untitled (Church)
Artist
Dateca. 1950
crayon, pencil, and watercolor on various joined papers
Not on view
Martín Ramírez, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, ca. 1953, crayon, pencil, and colored pencil on joined papers, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.193
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
Artist
Dateca. 1953
crayon, pencil, and colored pencil on joined papers
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

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Inez Nathaniel-Walker, Woman with Bowl of Flowers, 1974, felt-tipped pen and ink, ballpoint pen and ink, crayon, and pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.190
Woman with Bowl of Flowers
Artist
Date1974
felt-tipped pen and ink, ballpoint pen and ink, crayon, and pencil on paper
Not on view
Image Not Available
Double Portrait with Bald Man
Artist
Date1977
felt-tipped pen and ink, ballpoint pen and ink, crayon, and pencil on paper mounted on brown paperboard
Not on view
Inez Nathaniel-Walker, Double Portrait, 1977, felt-tipped pen and ink, crayon, and pencil on paperboard mounted to paperboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.188
Double Portrait
Artist
Date1977
felt-tipped pen and ink, crayon, and pencil on paperboard mounted to paperboard
Not on view
Gene Davis, Untitled, 1976, pencil, colored pencil, and crayon on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Florence Coulson Davis, 2000.43.12
Untitled
Artist
Date1976
pencil, colored pencil, and crayon on paper
Not on view