As Soft as She Is...
- Artist: Amy Sherald
- Date: 2022
- Medium: Oil paint on canvas
- Dimensions: support: 1378 × 1093 × 67 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
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About this artwork
This is the "As Soft as She Is..." by Amy Sherald. Painted in 2022, oil on canvas, it's a three‑quarter length portrait of a Black woman facing the viewer. Her skin is rendered in shades of grey – a grisaille technique – while she wears a pink blouse, yellow trousers and a striking white leopard‑print jacket against a peach background. The direct pose gives her a commanding presence, and the flat, smooth surface recalls early photography and the absence of Black figures in art history. Sherald deliberately removes context, making the figure timeless. The leopard‑print jacket nods to de Chirico’s 1940 “Lady in Leopard Coat”, re‑claiming a space in the history of portraiture. This work is currently loaned to the “Amy Sherald: American Sublime” show, running 2024‑2026.
See it in person
As Soft as She Is... 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.
