WATTS INDEXThe canonical database of visual culture

Artists›Peggy Bacon

Peggy Bacon

Peggy Bacon

American, 1895–1987

WA-00026042

PrintmakingStreet Art

Representation

None documented

18

Institutional Exhibitions

52

Works in Collection

95

Assets Indexed

5

Authority-backed Facts

0

Publications Referenced

90%

Profile Completeness

Cultural Positioning

Influence Graph

No influence edges encoded yet.

Authority Records (3)

WikidataQ7160630 ULAN500024574

Selected Institutional Exhibitions

View all exhibitions →

No image

Recent Acquisitions: Contemporary Prints

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1986

No image

American Prints: 1900�1960; Recent Acquisitions: Illustrated Books

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1985–1986

No image

Art of the Twenties

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1979–1980

No image

Portraits

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1973–1974

No image

Portraits from the Museum Collection

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1960

No image

Faces and Figures: Drawings from the Collection of The Museum of Modern Art

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1954

No image

Master Prints from the Museum Collection

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1949

No image

Portraits in Prints

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1948

No image

Drawings in the Collection of The Museum of Modern Art

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1947

No image

Modern Drawings

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1944

No image

New Acquisitions: American Drawings

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1942

No image

Twenty Lithographs: Graphic Art Processes

Museum of Modern Art, New York

1941

Field Verification (4 fields)

4 cross-verified · 0 single-source

Birth yearArtsy + Duplicate Merge· 85%✓
BiographyMoMA· 93%✓
Death yearDuplicate Merge· 85%✓
NationalityArtsy· 85%✓

Source Registry (1)

MoMA bulk 2026-05-04https://www.moma.org/artists/273
Tier 1 · Institutional92%

About

Why this artist matters now

Peggy Bacon was an American printmaker, painter, and illustrator known for her satirical etchings and lithographs of urban American life in the early twentieth century. Working primarily in black and white, she captured social types and cultural moments with a sharp, observational line and mordant wit. Her graphic work ranged from portrait studies to genre scenes depicting jazz-age nightlife, bohemian society, and the everyday absurdities of modern city dwelling. She also worked as a muralist and book illustrator, maintaining a practice that bridged commercial and fine art throughout her long career.

Source: Moma Bulk 2026 05 04 · Trust score: 92% · Updated 29d ago

Graph relationships

Taste overlap and adjacency

Movement

Street Art

Medium

Printmaking

Related Artists

12 in graph

Institutional

Museum Collections

Art Institute of Chicago Museum of Modern ArtNew York Whitney Museum of American Art

Canonical record

Artworks (52)

Lingering Memories

1954 · Pen and black ink, watercolor, and opaque watercolor with traces of graphite on paper

22 7/16 × 30 11/16 in. (57 × 78 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Nothing Doing

1952 · Drypoint on cream wove paper

Plate: 17.5 × 15 cm (6 15/16 × 5 15/16 in.); Sheet: 32 × 24 cm (12 5/8 × 9 1/2 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Varied Wares

1952 · Drypoint in black on cream wove paper

Plate: 20.3 × 25.3 cm (8 × 10 in.); Sheet: 30.8 × 37.8 cm (12 3/16 × 14 15/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Moonlight Sonata

1939 · Pastel on paper

20 1/2 × 26 1/8 in. (52.1 × 66.4 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Great Question

1937 · Pastel on paper

19 3/4 × 25 5/8 in. (50.2 × 65.1 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Untilled Field

The Untilled Field

1937 · Drypoint in black on cream wove paper

Plate: 15.2 × 19.1 cm (6 × 7 9/16 in.); Sheet: 26.8 × 29.1 cm (10 9/16 × 11 1/2 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

The Social Graces

The Social Graces

1935 · Drypoint, etching in dark blue, on ivory wove paper

Plate: 28 × 19 cm (11 1/16 × 7 1/2 in.); Sheet: 36.6 × 25.3 cm (14 7/16 × 10 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Mayor La Guardia

Mayor La Guardia

1934 · Lithograph

composition: 13 1/8 x 9 11/16" (33.3 x 24.6cm); sheet: 15 7/8 × 11 5/16" (40.3 × 28.8 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Pity the Blind

1933 · Drypoint on cream wove paper

Image/plate: 11.5 × 21.6 cm (4 9/16 × 8 9/16 in.); Sheet: 24.8 × 38.1 cm (9 13/16 × 15 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Morning Exercises

Morning Exercises

1933 · Drypoint in black on cream wove paper

Plate: 22.3 × 31.5 cm (8 13/16 × 12 7/16 in.); Sheet: 31.5 × 38.1 cm (12 7/16 × 15 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

The Ardent Bowlers

The Ardent Bowlers

1932 · Drypoint

plate: 5 15/16 x 13 15/16" (15.1 x 35.4cm); sheet: 12 5/8 x 18 15/16" (32 x 48.1 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

1932 · Drypoint

plate: 4 15/16 x 6 15/16" (12.5 x 17.7cm); sheet: 9 3/4 × 12 13/16" (24.7 × 32.6 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

1931 · etching

Platemark: 12.6 x 17.5 cm (4 15/16 x 6 7/8 in.); Sheet: 21.2 x 28.4 cm (8 3/8 x 11 3/16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Satyr

1931 · Drypoint

plate: 5 15/16 x 4 1/2" (15.1 x 11.5cm); sheet: 12 3/16 × 9 7/16" (31 × 23.9 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Nymph

1931 · Drypoint

plate: 6 x 4 1/2" (15.2 x 11.5cm); sheet: 12 1/8 × 9 3/4" (30.8 × 24.7 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Peanuts

1930 · Lithograph

composition: 10 3/16 x 13 1/16" (25.8 x 33.1cm); sheet: 14 1/4 × 18 9/16" (36.2 × 47.2 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Slovenliness

1930 · Etching

plate: 7 1/16 x 5 1/16" (17.9 x 12.8cm); sheet: 13 × 9 7/8" (33 × 25.1 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

1930 · Etching and drypoint

plate 11 15/16 x 16 13/16" (30.3 x 42.7 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Heywood Broun

1930 · Lithograph

composition: 10 15/16 x 15 5/16" (27.8 x 38.9cm); sheet: 15 9/16 x 19 15/16" (39.5 x 50.7 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Rural Retreat

1930 · Lithograph

composition: 11 1/16 x 15" (28.1 x 38.1cm); sheet: 14 3/16 × 18 11/16" (36 × 47.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Greed

1929 · Drypoint in black on cream laid paper

Plate: 13.3 × 22.5 cm (5 1/4 × 8 7/8 in.); Sheet: 24 × 31.5 cm (9 1/2 × 12 7/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Peter Platt Printing

Peter Platt Printing

1929 · Etching

plate: 5 15/16 x 4" (15.1 x 10.1cm); sheet: 12 3/8 × 10" (31.5 × 25.4 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Greed

1929 · Drypoint

plate: 5 3/16 x 8 15/16" (13.2 x 22.7cm); sheet: 9 1/2 × 12 11/16" (24.2 × 32.2 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Achates

1929 · Etching

plate: 4 15/16 x 4" (12.6 x 10.2cm); sheet: 12 5/8 × 10 1/8" (32 × 25.7 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

View all 52 artworks →

Artwork sources (5)

52 published of 89 catalogued · 74 with image

MoMA
37 publishedof 74 catalogued65 img
Art Institute Chicago
9 published9 img
The Met
3 published
Cleveland Museum of Art
2 published
Whitney
1 published

Per-Artwork Provenance Chains (top 2)

2 entries · 1 sources

The Noon Hour
1931 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Lady Artist
1925 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number

Record

Images

Artsy artwork: Playing Hopscotch

Artsy

Artsy artwork: Auction (1925)

Artsy

Artsy artwork: Hatty (1921)

Artsy

Artsy artist portrait

Artsy

The Social Graces (Art Institute of Chicago)

Art Institute of Chicago

The Social Graces (Art Institute of Chicago)

Art Institute of Chicago

Relationships

5

Movements1

Collections4

Art Institute of Chicago Museum of Modern Art Whitney Museum of American Art Phillips

Institutional

Representation & Collections

In collection

Art Institute of Chicago

In collection

Museum of Modern Art

New York, US

In collection

Whitney Museum of American Art

Market

Auction sale history

Houses that have sold works by this artist at auction