The Frog King II, from the series Grimms' Fairy Tales Artist: Natalie Frank (American, born 1980, B.A. 2002)

2011–14

Prints and Drawings

Not on view

In her series of drawings after popular nineteenth-century fairy tales written by the Brothers Grimm, Natalie Frank used vibrant colors and caricatured forms to depict scenes of sexual assault and rape. The Frog King I (2016.19.1) and The Frog King II were inspired by a tale in which a young princess is unwillingly bound for life to a frog-turned-king. In Frog King I, the king stretches his tongue toward the princess’s genital area as, unaware, she reaches up for her golden ball. In Frog King II, the king rapes the princess. Throughout the series, Frank makes visible and condemns ongoing violence against women and children.

Medium

Gouache and chalk pastel

Dimensions

sheet: 30 9/16 × 22 11/16 in. (77.6 × 57.6 cm)

Credit Line

Purchased with a gift from the Richard Massey Foundation

Accession Number

2016.19.2

Geography

Made in United States

Culture

American

Period

21st century

Classification

Drawings

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance
Purchased from the Rhoda Hoffman Gallery by the Richard Massey Foundation, October 2015.
Bibliography
  • Lisa Hodermarsky et al., On the Basis of Art: 150 Years of Women at Yale, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2021), 272–73, no. 64, fig. 2
  • "Acquisitions July 1, 2015–June 30, 2016," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin: Online Supplement (accessed December 1, 2016), 46
Object copyright
Courtesy the Artist and Salon 94
In Copyright
Additional information

Object/Work type

interior

Subject

Women artists fairy tales frogs (animals) human figures (visual works) literature, German

Technical metadata and APIs

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