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Open 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

Visit
Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Admission is always free

6th and Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20565

Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights
Starting June 3
Exhibitions & Events
Featured event:

Block Party
Join us June 6
Art & Artists
Open Call

Artists Reimagining the Collection
Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Fingerprint Drawing

1969

Joel Shapiro

Associated Names

Joel Shapiro

Artist, American, 1941 - 2025

The image features rounded, overlapping shapes with a smoky black texture resembling thumbprints. The shapes create a dense pattern across the canvas, evoking a sense of depth and layering. The arrangement of the forms resembles a field of scattered stones or leaves on a monochromatic backdrop.

This object’s media is not available for download. Contact us about image usage.

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Artwork overview

Medium

black ink applied with fingertips on wove paper
Credit Line

The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund, Patrons' Permanent Fund and Gift of Dorothy and Herbert Vogel
Dimensions

overall: 17.1 x 21.7 cm (6 3/4 x 8 9/16 in.)
Accession Number

1991.241.130

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Paula Cooper Gallery, NY); Dorothy and Herbert Vogel, New York, NY; purchase/gift to NGA, 1991.

Associated Names

Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Vogel

Exhibition History

1999

Afterimage: Drawing Through Process. Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, 1999, cat. pg. 10

Bibliography

1999

Afterimage: Drawing Through Process. Exh. cat. The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, 1999: 145.

Inscriptions

center verso in graphite: Joel Shapiro / 1969 / Katonah

Wikidata ID

Q64581854

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