Untitled, Providence, Rhode Island
- Artist: Francesca Woodman
- Date: 1975–8
- Medium: Photograph, gelatin silver print on paper and ink
- Dimensions: image: 144 x 146 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
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About this artwork
This is the "Untitled, Providence, Rhode Island" by Francesca Woodman. The square black‑and‑white photograph measures roughly 14 × 14 cm and is a gelatin silver print on paper, finished with a splash of blue ink. Woodman leans sharply to her right beneath a low, almost industrial ceiling, her pale polka‑dotted dress and dark shoes in focus while her face and body blur. She stands in front of a small, weather‑stained brick structure—pipes and wires curl around the walls, and a stack of bricks dominates the left side. The whole image tilts slightly left, giving a sense of movement. Below the print, on the off‑white mount, Woodman scrawled, “Bunny bun I’m in the photolab come fetch me if the mood or a rock should strike you.” That note was a private wink to her boyfriend, hinting at the relentless work ethic she kept at the Rhode Island School of Design. Like many of her self‑portraits, she occupies the frame, yet she feels both contained and on the brink of being swallowed by the surrounding ruin.
See it in person
Untitled, Providence, Rhode Island is in the collection of Tate Modern on Bankside, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
