Elizabeth Catlett,  Latch Key Child, 1988. Silkscreen print, ed. 40/50. 31 1/2x25 1/2 inches.

Born in 1919 in Washington, D.C.

Since the early 1940s, Elizabeth Catlett has worked to further art education and appreciation of African-Americans. She says, "...I wanted to do art that black people would relate to...I would also like to have them come into art galleries and museums, and that's what I've been trying to do ever since."

Latch Key Child is an example of Catlett's printwork. She favors this medium since prints are easy to transport and duplicate, which allows for greater distribution. The same image can thus be seen by many people in different parts of the country. Catlett comments, "...I work for the people that I think are going to look at the prints. I want to work for everybody. I think that I owe, because of being a black woman whose grandparents were slaves; I feel that talking to my grandmother, my two grandmothers, that I have been privileged to become an artist and to earn a living as an artist."

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