White Man Contemplating Pyramids, Egypt

1989, printed 1996

Richard Misrach

Associated Names
Richard Misrach

Artist, American, born 1949

The image shows an elevated view of a narrow pathway bordered by two large pyramids. The horizon is high in the composition with an open sky and a few scattered clouds. The textured blocks of the pyramid create horizontal lines on the left side. The color palette is dominated by warm, earthy tones of desert landscape. A smaller pyramid stands in the distance, and a person on the pathway provides scale. The spaces between the pyramids and scattered stones on the pathway add depth to the scene.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    chromogenic print

  • Credit Line

    Anonymous Gift

  • Dimensions

    image: 46.2 × 58.4 cm (18 3/16 × 23 in.)
    sheet: 50.8 × 60.96 cm (20 × 24 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1998.91.14

  • Series Title

    Desert Cantos: Prologue

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Anonymous gift to NGA, 1998.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1996

  • Tucker, Anne Wilkes. Crimes and Splendors: The Desert Cantos of Richard Misrach. Exh. cat. The Museum of Fine Arts. Houston, 1996: p. 61.

Inscriptions

signed by artist, lower left in black ink: 22/25 WHITE MAN CONTEMPLATING PYRAMIDS; by artist, lower right in black ink: © Richard Misrach 1989/1996F.

Wikidata ID

Q64159028

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