North Carolina Mountain Woman
Wood engraving on thin laid paper.
Edition unknown, but likely one of a handful of impressions only. Our colleagues and friends at The Annex Galleries suggest fewer than 10 impressions. Aside from a couple of published prints, most woodcuts by Latham do not seem to have been editioned. The Smithsonian dates this print as being created in 1935. We have followed their lead but have not been able to confirm this date.
This finely-carved peaceful composition is rooted in a regionalist style that was dominant in Depression-Era United States. Yes, Latham, who had traveled, and who was married to another well-rounded artist, clearly knew her classics. The silent dignity of this woman from the Appalachian Mountains, carding wool, reminds us of the same subject depicted in 1855 by Jean-François Millet in his famous "La Cardeuse".
Signed and titled in pencil.
