"Terra-Cotta Head" by Elizabeth Catlett
More familiar with Catlett’s wood sculptures, Saar found herself drawn to “the surfaces of the face and the vacant eyes" of Terra-Cotta Head. Saar added: “She’s always abstracted the human figure, but I think thematically, our works interlock. Her focus on women and working women are close to my own ideas.”
Saar studied with artist and art historian Samella Lewis, a friend of Catlett’s. Because of this connection, Saar had the privilege of meeting Catlett. “I really look up to her—she was very much an inspiration.”
Henry Ossawa Tanner, Flight into Egypt, 1899. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, African Art Gallery Committee Fund, 69.452
"Flight into Egypt" by Henry Ossawa Tanner
“I always look for Henry Ossawa Tanner in African American collections,” says Saar, noting that Tanner’s Daniel in the Lions' Den is part of the collection at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, her home museum.
Seeing Tanner’s Flight into Egypt for the first time in the gallery devoted to early African American artists who pursued art professionally, she responded to its palette: “I love his tonality—the blues and greens. His work feels beautiful, subtle, and deeply emotional.”
Bob Thompson, Blue Madonna, 1961. Detroit Institute of Arts, Gift of Edward Levine in memory of Bob Thompson. Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, F1983.57
"Blue Madonna" by Bob Thompson
“I love this one—it plays between positive and negative color,” Saar says of Blue Madonna, located in the galleries’ grouping of works by Black artists inspired by their exploration of art in Europe. “He was way ahead of his time and created powerful spiritual paintings using diasporic imagery.”
Saar reflects on Thompson’s career, cut short by his death at age 28. “I’m sad that there aren't more of his works out there. He created powerful abstractions.”
Saar’s sculpture, Blood/Sweat/Tears, is in the DIA’s collection and will be on view again when the reinstalled Contemporary and Modern galleries open in late 2026. Saar created this piece in response to the death of her father Richard Saar, an artist and art conservator.
“Most of my work is very upbeat and looks toward a brighter future,” Saar says. “This was a moment where I had to allow myself to be sorrowful, to weep, and to really recognize that loss.”
For emerging artists, Saar offers this advice: “It's important to find your own independent voice, whether it is popular at the moment or not. ...A lot of the artists in these galleries were not recognized [until later]. Bob Thompson was not largely recognized until maybe the last 20 years. If you really want your work to last—and if you want to enjoy making it—find something that's uniquely interesting to you and talks about your life, your history, and your interests. That pursuit will make you a better artist.”
