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Source Description
Marguerite Zorach conceived her large, complex embroideries as major artistic statements at a time when the medium was routinely considered “craft,” as opposed to “fine art.” In doing so, she helped to erase such distinctions. One of her most acclaimed works, this example celebrates humanity in harmony with nature, presenting the artist, her husband (a Cleveland-raised sculptor named William Zorach), and their son amid an evergreen tree and four pairs of animals. Very time consuming to create, Zorach’s embroideries are rare.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
394840
label
The Family (In Memory of a Summer in the White Mountains)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
394840
contentType
object
title
The Family (In Memory of a Summer in the White Mountains)
description
Marguerite Zorach conceived her large, complex embroideries as major artistic statements at a time when the medium was routinely considered “craft,” as opposed to “fine art.” In doing so, she helped to erase such distinctions. One of her most acclaimed works, this example celebrates humanity in harmony with nature, presenting the artist, her husband (a Cleveland-raised sculptor named William Zorach), and their son amid an evergreen tree and four pairs of animals. Very time consuming to create, Zorach’s embroideries are rare.
date
1917
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q117244876
creators
41147
genreSpecific
Embroidery
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
object: 86.4 x 72.4 cm (34 x 28 1/2 in.); Framed: 91.4 x 77.8 cm (36 x 30 5/8 in.)
cul
America
accession
2020.261
Source extras
tec
plain weave silk; wool embroidery
tombstone
The Family (In Memory of a Summer in the White Mountains), 1917. Marguerite Zorach (American, 1887–1968). Plain weave silk; wool embroidery; object: 86.4 x 72.4 cm (34 x 28 1/2 in.); framed: 91.4 x 77.8 cm (36 x 30 5/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Edwin R. and Harriet Pelton Perkins Memorial Fund, 2020.261
collection
Textiles
inscriptions
inscription
THE FAMILY / DONE BY MARGUERITE ZORACH IN THE YEAR NINETEEN HUNDRED AND SEVENTEEN IN MEMORY OF A SUMMER IN THE WHITE MOUNTAINS
inscription_remark
The embroidered inscription is located on the outside border of the large centrally placed roundel on the front of the textile. It is an elaborate inscription recounting details of the embroidery’s inspiration and creation along with the artist's name and the date it was made.
didYouKnow
In 1925, Zorach served as first president of the New York Society of Women Artists, an organization still in existence.
citations
citation
<em>Year Book of the Architectural League of New York, and Catalogue of the Thirty-ninth Annual Exhibition</em>. 1924.
page_number
Reproduced: p.80
citation
Lippman, Herbert. "The Architectural League Inhibition." <em>The Arts</em> 5, No.3 (March 1924).
page_number
Mentioned: p.134; Reproduced: p.137
citation
Friedman Hoffman, Marilyn. <em>Marguerite and William Zorach: The Cubist Years, 1915-1918</em>. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1987.
page_number
Reproduced: Frontispiece
citation
Shilliam, Nicola J. "Emerging Identity: American Textile Artists in the Early Twentieth Century." In Carlano, Annie, and Nicola J. Shilliam. <em>Early Modern Textiles: From Arts and Crafts to Art Deco</em>. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1993.
page_number
p. 28-44
citation
Burk, Efram L. "Testament to American Modernism: The Prints of William and Marguerite Zorach." Ph.D. dissertation, The Pennsylvania State University, 1998.
page_number
Mentioned: pp.163, 211
citation
Fowler, Cynthia. "Early American Modernism and Craft Production: The Embroideries of Marguerite Zorach." Ph.D. dissertation, University of Delaware, 2002.
page_number
Mentioned: pp.112, 142; Reproduced: p.237
citation
Cheney, Liana.<em> Essays on Women Artists: "The Most Excellent." Vol.2.</em> Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen Press, 2003.
page_number
Mentioned: p.78
citation
Fowler, Cynthia.<em> The Modern Embroidery Movement</em>. London: Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2018.
page_number
Mentioned: p.214; Reproduced: p.215, n.15
citation
Shaykin, Rebecca, and Claudia Gould.<em> Edith Halpert: The Downtown Gallery and the Rise of American Art</em>. Jewish Museum, New York; New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2019.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p.31
citation
Butler, Eliza. "Review:<em> Edith Halpert and the Rise of American Ar</em>t." <em>Panorama: Journal of the Association of Historians of American Ar</em>t 6, no.1 (Spring 2020).
page_number
Mentioned (unpaginated)
url
editions.lib.umn.edu/panorama/article/edith-halpert/
citation
Litt, Steven. "Piece from Rose Iron Works highlights latest acquisitions." <em>The Plain Dealer</em>. December 20, 2020.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p.D3
citation
Kenny, Nancy, "Acquisitions," <em>Art Newspaper, </em>331 (February 2021).<em><br></em>
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced, p. 23.
citation
"New on View.” <em>Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine</em> 64, no. 1 (2024): Back cover.
page_number
Reproduced and Mentioned: Back cover
creditline
Edwin R. and Harriet Pelton Perkins Memorial Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:59:19.753000
sourceId
394840
dept
Textiles
coll
Textiles
med
plain weave silk; wool embroidery
creatorTags
female
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
c34a417a63caaa74