Circe

2015, sold by DC Moore Gallery (New York, NY) to Chazen Museum of Art

• Fine, Ruth et al. "The Art of Romare Bearden." Washington, DC: National Gallery of Art, 2003. pp. 88-89
• O'Meally, Robert G. "Romare Bearden: A Black Odyssey." New York: DC Moore Gallery, 2007. pp. 4, 22, 54, no. 15
• Grethlein, Jonas. "Die Odysee: Homer und die Kunst des Erzählens." München: Verlag C.H. Beck, 2017. p. 12, no. 4
• Villing, Alexandra, J. Lesley Fitton, Victoria Donnellan and Andrew Shapland. "Troy: Myth and Reality." London: Thames & Hudson; The Trustees of the British Museum, 2019. pp. 226-227, fig. 230

• Romare Bearden: A Black Odyssey: Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services, 10/13/2012–3/31/2015
• Romare Bearden: A Black Odyssey: DC Moore Gallery, 11/13/2007–1/5/2008

This vibrant paper collage, rendered in colorful geometric shapes and patterns, features a central figure, Circe, set against a bold red backdrop. Circe has black skin and hair, and she wears an orange-gold skirt accented with red, blue, and green designs. A pink bib, overlaid with large gold jewelry, adorns her chest like an ornate breastplate. She also wears large gold earrings, gold armbands above her elbows, and large silver cuffs around her wrists. A gold headpiece with silver feathers rests upon her coiffed hair. Turning her head to her right, her left arm is raised, with a black bird perched on her extended finger and a blue snake with white stripes coiling around her arm. Circe gazes down upon a white skull with red eyes and prominent teeth, which rests on a gray pedestal decorated with black geometric designs. A tall, slender black and white object stands on the pedestal next to the skull. At Circe’s feet, a brown lion-like creature stands in profile, its long red tongue extended. A gray column on the far right supports an arched canopy, framing the composition. The collage employs a striking palette of saturated colors that sharply contrast against the vibrant red background.

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