Untitled

2018

Jasper Johns

Associated Names
Jasper Johns

Artist, American, born 1930

This image features a large vertical rectangle with thin, uneven lines to create a weathered texture. It contains two skeletal figures with exaggerated ribcages, one positioned above the other within a casket-like shape. The abstract composition of the image hints at elements of an old, worn tombstone or coffin with a skeletal figure donning a small hat, while the lower portion features another skull encased in a similar setting. Surrounding this central figure are disorganized shapes, with jumbled letters on the left resembling an incomplete or fragmented letterpress and hand signs on the right that appear like an abstract representation of communication methods. At the bottom, two simplified stick figures stand off to the side.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    intaglio with chine collé on Gampishi White laid down on Whatman Crestwick paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of the Collectors Committee

  • Dimensions

    sheet: 95.25 × 67.95 cm (37 1/2 × 26 3/4 in.)
    image: 78.42 × 55.56 cm (30 7/8 × 21 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2019.77.1


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Universal Limited Art Editions, New York; (Hiram Butler Gallery, Houston, Texas); Purchased by NGA with funds provided by the Collectors Committee, 2019

Associated Names

Inscriptions

numbered lower left, in graphite: 2/36; signed and dated lower right, in graphite: J Johns '18

Markings

ULAE blindstamp, lower left corner

Watermarks

vertical along left edge: J WHATMAN ENGLAND B


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