Dinner Plate

This is one of a set of 6 plates created by Roberto Lugo in honor of Sybby Grant, the enslaved cook. Each of these plates contains symbols referring to the life of Sybby Grant, who prepared food for the Thomas residency of 1 West Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore, Maryland. At the center, Lugo drew a crest including the initials S and G, as well as a cross (denoting Sybby’s faith, as expressed in the letter she wrote to Thomas), and the Maryland state flower. These central symbols are contained within a common decorative framing device used in 19th century photographic portraiture. The rim of the plates are adorned with more decorative patterns, and each one has specifically been treated and artificially aged to connote the object’s status as both artwork and utilitarian object. Within this pattern are images of terrapins and canvasback ducks, both mentioned by Grant in her letter to Thomas as exemplars of her skill. As there are no known surviving images of Sybby Grant, and these plates serve as a type of portrait or likeness for her, while metaphorically offering her an honor she would not have received during her time at 1WMVP—a seat at the dining room table—in turn helping to contextualize the space as a former dining room.

Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Commissioned by the Walters Art Museum, 2018; purchased by Walters Art Museum, 2018.