About: The Negress

The Negress is a bronze sculpture by French artist Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. It is now in the permanent collection at the Indianapolis Museum of Art.The Negress was purchased by the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1980. The Negress relates to Carpeaux's last monumental sculpture project, Fontaine de l'Observatoire, in Paris's Luxembourg Garden. To interpret this theme, Carpeaux elected to use four life-size female figures supporting a globe and representing different races as continents. The Indianapolis bronze is a preparatory work for Africa, presented as a bust rather than a full-length figure.