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At sunbeam creek. Are with little girl refugees again in peril from forest fires. But escape this also, but half naked and in burned rags / At Torrington. Are persued by a storm of fire but save themselves by jumping into a stream and swim across as seen in next picture / Their red color is caused by glare of flames. At Torrington. They reach the river just in the nick of time.
"Darger bound these paintings as books. Their original form was in book form, showing us that they were really illustrations to the novel. They were all taken out of the book form for the first exhibition in 1976. These triptycs were probably mid-career for Darger. We know that he started out smaller and continued to build up and become more confident with his art-making, eventually getting to those iconic 12-foot-long panoramic landscapes."
About This Work
Watercolor, pencil, carbon tracing and collage on pieced paper (19 x 70 1/2"). Anonymous Gift in recognition of Sam Farber 2004.1.2A. © Kiyoko Lerner. Photo: James Prinz.
About Our Guide
Brooke Davis Anderson, director and curator of the Contemporary Center at the American Folk Art Museum since 1999, is responsible for the care and cultivation of the contemporary objects by self-taught artists in the permanent collection as well as new acquisitions and exhibitions. Brooke is also involved with programming and collaborative initiatives of The Contemporary Center and its special division, The Henry Darger Study Center.
Photographs, image captions, and accession information provided by the American Folk Art Museum. Reprinted with permission.