Francesca Woodman
Three Eels, Rome

Three Eels, Rome

© Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Three Eels, Rome
Three Eels, Rome
CultureAmerican
Titles
  • Three Eels, Rome
Date1977–1978
PlaceRome, , Italy
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsImage: 2 1/4 × 7 11/16 in. (5.7 × 19.5 cm)
Sheet: 7 11/16 × 9 9/16 in. (19.5 × 24.3 cm)
Credit LineThe Allan Chasanoff Photographic Collection
Object number91.1268
Not on view

Explore Further

Department
Photography
Object Type
Description

Though born and
educated in the United States, Francesca Woodman’s aesthetic interests and
sensibilities lie in European modernism. Woodman grew up with a deep love for
Italian culture; learning to speak fluent Italian after spending her summers
and early childhood living outside Florence. These photographs are from a
series of performances Woodman made during her year studying abroad in Rome.
They feature the artist slithering around a bowl of eels.






Woodman had no interest in commenting on images
of mass culture or exploring popular identity. Instead her focus on enigmatic
and surreal visions of the body, the patina of classical mythology that infuses
her photographs, and her emphasis on traditional photographic technique
distinguish her work from that of other self-performance artists of the 1970s.





ProvenanceThe artist; given to Allan Chasanoff, New York; given to MFAH, 1991.
Exhibition History"Tradition and the Unpredictable: The Allan Chasanoff Photographic Collection," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, January 16–March 27, 1994.

"Relative Positions: Amy Adler, Liza May Post, Francesca Woodman," the Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, October 19–December 9, 2001.

"Ruptures and Continuities: Photography Made after 1960 from the MFAH Collection," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, February 21–May 9, 2010.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
verso upper left above signature " 3 eels, Venice c 1979 "
verso upper left in pencil [illegible]

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.

Parallelogram
Francesca Woodman
1980
Gelatin silver prints
91.1271.A,.B
Untitled, Providence, Rhode Island
Francesca Woodman
1976, printed later
Gelatin silver print
2020.159
Boy with Egg
Francesca Woodman
1980
Gelatin silver print
91.1269
Foxgloves
Francesca Woodman
1980
Gelatin silver print
91.1270
Big Eels
Katsushika Hokusai
c. 1840
Woodblock print
86.521
Untitled (Statue with Feathers)
George Woodman
1988
Gelatin silver print, photogram
91.1272
Neapolitan Baroque Vase
Betty Woodman
1980
Earthenware
2004.1495
Pillow Pitcher
Betty Woodman
c. 1981
Earthenware
2007.1141
Pitcher Vase with Triangular Tray
Betty Woodman
1984
Whiteware
2007.1113.A,.B
Balustrade Relief Vase 98-12
Betty Woodman
1998
Earthenware
2007.1114.A-.J
Wall Piece with Vase
Betty Woodman
1986
Whiteware
2007.1115.A,.B
Shark Soup Tureen
Betty Woodman
1992
Earthenware
2008.903.A,.B