Martin Puryear’s Ladder for Booker T. Washington (1996) is an iconic work of art. The sculpture, made of ash and maple wood, resembles a near-endless, sinuous ladder due to the artistic deployment of forced perspective. The distance between the rungs begin at an 11 and 3/4th inches wide at the bottom, and slowly diminishes as you near the top, their span being a miniscule 1 and 1/4th inches apart at its peak.
The subject in matter when referring to Puryear’s Ladder is quite fascinating to observe. Interestingly enough, the piece was named after it already had been constructed. The title of the work is in no way a frame for the sculpture, instead, it is a poetic interpretation of the work in retrospect of its completion. In one interpretation, the ladder acts to illustrate the elements of hardship that Booker T Washington’s plans for African
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Ladder entails many handcraft techniques that Puryear learned abroad studying in West Africa. That, in itself, represents the African roots behind the ladder. The use of these techniques stays true to African heritage, an important part of their culture. By using this cultural production to amplify the representation of the African people in this work of art, Puryear has added an entirely new layer to the meaning of the piece. The deployment of these techniques serves to identify the ladder, itself, as a representation of Africa and its displaced people.
In form, this piece does not fully identify with a set recognized style. There are many aspects of conceptual naturalism that can be found throughout the piece, and that starts with the woodworking. Puryear, a master woodworker, is able to stress the importance of human touch and the woodwork tradition of West Africa. The use of forced perspective importantly relates to the form of the work, as it evokes a powerful emotion when perceived as a ladder receding endlessly into