A Letter

1952

David Smith

Associated Names
David Smith

Artist, American, 1906 - 1965

Margaret Lowengrund

Printer, American, 1905 - 1957

The image features bold, black lines and shapes on a white background, creating an abstract composition. The lines form rigid and fluid patterns across the page. Some shapes could be interpreted as faces, musical notes, animal-like or human-like figures. There are also shapes resembling landscapes, hills, valleys, patterns reminiscent of hieroglyphics, and abstract elements implying interconnected forms.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    lithograph in black on wove paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Ruth Cole Kainen

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 50.96 × 66.04 cm (20 1/16 × 26 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2006.57.33

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Ruth Cole Kainen, Washington, DC; gift to NGA, 2006.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2008

  • Medieval to Modern: Recent Acquisitions of Drawings, Prints, and Illustrated Books, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2008, no. 183.

2014

  • Modern American Prints and Drawings from the Kainen Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2014-2015

2016

  • Three Centuries of American Prints: from the National Gallery of Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington; National Gallery in Prague, Prague 1; Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso, Mexico City; Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, 2016 - 2017, no. 114.

Inscriptions

lower left in ink: David Smith E13; lower right in graphite: 8/1952

Watermarks

Basingwerk Parchment

Wikidata ID

Q76338156

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