Watercolor and pencil on paper, 1990, signed with artist's monogram at lower right, inscribed and dated on the verso, unframed.

Sheet size 30 1/2 x 22 1/2 in.

Thornton Dial was a self-taught African-American artist whose work challenged societal norms and addressed themes of race, history, and social justice. Born in rural Emelle, Alabama, Dial spent much of his life working as a metalworker and laborer, a background that deeply influenced his art. He began creating works in the late 1980s, using found objects and discarded materials to construct intricate, large-scale assemblages, paintings, and sculptures. His pieces reflect a profound engagement with American history and cultural issues, including the legacy of slavery, the Civil Rights Movement, and the struggles of the working class.

Thornton Dial’s watercolors reveal a softer, more intimate side of his artistic practice, complementing the raw energy of his large-scale assemblages. Using delicate washes of color, Dial created fluid, expressive compositions that often explored themes of memory, identity, and the human condition. His watercolors showcase a remarkable ability to balance abstraction and figuration, blending vibrant hues with gestural lines to evoke movement and emotion. These works often reflect Dial's deep connection to nature and his observations of the social and cultural landscapes around him. Despite their lighter medium, his watercolors carry the same thematic weight as his larger works, offering a poignant and deeply personal perspective on the complexities of life and history.

The watercolor offered in this auction is from Dials’ Life Go On series from 1989 to 1990. These works feature a central female figure amidst birds, fish and eggs symbolizing femininity and fertility. They were Dial’s tribute to his belief that “Women are the creation of the world. They give love and care, and they also give strength and power.” Works from this series are in the collection of the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the Brooklyn Museum in New York, the Knoxville Museum of Art in Tennessee and and the Souls Grown Deep Foundation.

Soft cockling to sheet; overall in good estate condition.