OWN A PIECE OF HISTORY | ROBERT LEWIS CLARK'S '44'
- 17 hours ago
- 1 min read
On a cold February morning in 2007, Barack Obama stood in Springfield, Illinois and set history in motion. From that day, millions of Americans became archivists — clipping headlines, saving programs, holding onto anything that might one day prove they witnessed the moment.
Lura Satterfield Shareef was one of them. After the historic 2008 election, she handed her son every clipping, every fragment of that momentous chapter and said simply: "Do something with this."
Chicago artist Robert Lewis Clark did exactly that. His monumental mixed-media work '44' — 11 feet wide, 8 feet tall — transformed her collection of press clippings into a breathtaking homage to the 44th President of the United States, the country's first Black president. Woven together on wood in layers of print, color, and texture, the work pulses with the energy of a nation that dared to believe. Drawing on the influence of Jackson Pollock's raw expressionism and Mark Rothko's emotional depth, the self-taught Clark creates art that doesn't just hang on a wall — it moves you.
Now, a limited edition of 100 signed and numbered prints brings '44' into homes and collections. One already belongs to the Obama Presidential Center (OPC), set to open this Juneteenth. Only 20 prints remain.
Each print measures 36 × 26 inches, produced on 100% acid-free archival cotton rag paper with a 220-year lifespan — a literal heirloom. Priced at $4,400, this is a rare opportunity to own a work of enduring cultural and artistic significance.
'44' is currently on view at Glory! Glory! at the Zhou B Art Center through March 20th.
Learn more pigmentintl@gmail.com