In a career that spanned half a century, Caroline Durieux, a master lithographer, created prints that chronicled the beauty and absurdity of academia, New Orleans's famed Carnival season, characters observed from everyday life, and more. Caroline Durieux: Lithographs of the Thirties and Forties brings together fifty-eight images that reveal her keen understanding of both the comic and tragic aspects of satire. These remarkable works, with accompanying text by art historian Richard Cox, establish her place within the tradition of American satirical art. A new foreword by art historian Sally Main and archivist Susan Tucker considers Durieux's life and influence from her main periods of activity through the present day.
Born in New Orleans in 1896, Durieux spent several years with her husband in Cuba before the two settled in Mexico City for a decade, and Latin American settings inspired some of her earliest forays into lithography. Her time in Mexico also brought her into contact with Diego Rivera, whose enthusiasm for her work brought her national and international attention. When Durieux returned to the United States in 1936, she taught art classes and held several positions with the Works Progress Administration (WPA), where she championed local artists and oversaw the creation of an index of Louisiana art and numerous public art projects. The prints collected in this volume showcase the artist's humor as well as her keen eye for the scenes and people she encountered in Louisiana and abroad. Originally published in 1977 and long unavailable, Caroline Durieux: Lithographs of the Thirties and Forties finally returns to print.