Betye Saar, Assemblage Artist Who Reclaimed Black Stereotypes, Dies at 99
Betye Saar, an influential American artist celebrated for reimagining racist memorabilia into powerful symbols of defiance, passed away peacefully in her sleep on March 21, 2025, just four days shy of her 100th birthday, as confirmed by Roberts Projects, her gallery. Born in Los Angeles in 1926, Saar was inspired by Watts Towers, leading her to shift from a career in social work to the realm of fine art. Her acclaimed pieces include Black Girl's Window (1969) and The Liberation of Aunt Jemima (1972). Survived by her daughters Lezley, Alison, and Tracye, along with six grandchildren and a pet tortoise, her legacy is now overseen by the Betye Saar Legacy Group, with her works currently exhibited at Roberts Projects and the Palmer Museum of Art.
Key facts
- Betye Saar died peacefully in her sleep on March 21, 2025, four days before her 100th birthday.
- She was born in Los Angeles in 1926.
- Her father died when she was five from an infection a segregated hospital refused to treat.
- She was inspired by Sam Rodia's Watts Towers.
- She studied design at California State University, Long Beach; USC; and California State University.
- Her first assemblage, Black Girl's Window, was created in 1969.
- The Liberation of Aunt Jemima (1972) was made for a show at the Rainbow Sign in Berkeley.
- Angela Davis said the work sparked the Black women's movement.
- Saar traveled to Nigeria, Senegal, Brazil, and Haiti after a 1970 trip to the Field Museum with David Hammons.
- Her great-aunt's death in 1974 brought family heirlooms into her work.
- She created large installations like House of Fortune (1988) and Wings of Morning (1992).
- She had solo shows at LACMA, the Whitney Museum, and Fondazione Prada in Paris.
- Current exhibitions include a wearable art show at Roberts Projects through August 22, 2025, and a survey at the Palmer Museum of Art through September 13, 2025.
- The Betye Saar Legacy Group, established with Roberts Projects, now stewards her estate.
Entities
Artists
- Betye Saar
- Sam Rodia
- David Hammons
- Angela Davis
- Martin Luther King Jr.
- Kerry James Marshall
- Simon Rodia
Institutions
- Roberts Projects
- California State University, Long Beach
- University of Southern California
- California State University
- Morgan Library and Museum
- Rainbow Sign
- Field Museum
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art
- Whitney Museum of American Art
- Fondazione Prada
- Palmer Museum of Art
- Betye Saar Legacy Group
- Artnet News
- The Guardian
- Museum of Modern Art
- American Academy of Arts and Letters
- Quaker Oats
- Los Angeles Times
- The New York Times
- New-York Historical Society
- Huntington Library
Locations
- Los Angeles
- Watts
- Pasadena
- California
- Berkeley
- Chicago
- Nigeria
- Senegal
- Brazil
- Haiti
- New York
- Paris
- Massachusetts
- Miami
- State College
- Pennsylvania
- United States
- Altadena
- Watts Towers