About this artwork

Picabia made this work by painting over an illustration of a steam engine, probably found in a technical journal relating to railway engineering. He selected some parts to paint over and added in others. The artist was influenced by the enthusiasm for mechanisation he saw in American culture. Here, he uses the machine as an ironic metaphor for human life. The title alludes to the creation of Eve from Adam's rib and also to the Virgin birth. The gold background may refer to Renaissance paintings of the Virgin and Child.

Updated before 2020

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  • artist:
    Francis Picabia (1879 - 1953) French
  • title:
    Fille née sans mère [Girl Born without a Mother]
  • date created:
    About 1916 - 1917
  • materials:
    Gouache and metallic paint on printed paper
  • measurements:
    50.00 x 65.00 cm (framed: 90.80 x 75.90 x 3.80 cm)
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    Purchased 1990
  • accession number:
    GMA 3545
  • gallery:
  • subject:
  • glossary:
  • artwork photographed by:
    Antonia Reeve
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Francis Picabia

Francis Picabia