Image

An abstract drawing that looks like an architectural edifice or complex machinery. The graphite and soot have been applied and scraped off in places, giving it a foggy appearance.
An abstract drawing that looks like an architectural edifice or complex machinery. The graphite and soot have been applied and scraped off in places, giving it a foggy appearance.
An abstract drawing that looks like an architectural edifice or complex machinery. The graphite and soot have been applied and scraped off in places, giving it a foggy appearance.
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Lee Bontecou

Untitled

Description

Maker

Lee Bontecou (American, b. 1931)

Title

Untitled

Year

1966

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

graphite, soot

Supports

Dimensions

Image/sheet: 50.2 x 68.9 cm (19 3/4 x 27 1/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Signed in pencil in LR:Bontecou-1966

Credit / Object Number

Credit

The Albert Pilavin Memorial Collection of 20th Century American Art

Object Number

72.051

Type

Projects & Publications

Publications

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Perception and Presence in Contemporary Drawing
Mar 05, 2022 – Sep 11, 2022

Label copy

Its stark contours offset by smudged outlines, this abstract drawing suggests the architectural and the cosmic, invoking perhaps a fortress or spaceship. Providence-born artist Lee Bontecou is known for sculptural work that defies the boundaries between art media. She made drawing instrumental to her process, allowing her to work out ideas. In the 1950s she began experimenting with soot, using a blowtorch with the oxygen shut off to produce the rich blacks she repeatedly added and subtracted here. Her machine-like forms reflect the processes she used to realize them.

Albert Pilavin Collection
Twentieth Century American Art II
Oct 23, 1973 – Nov 25, 1973

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Tombstone

Lee Bontecou (American, b. 1931)
Untitled, 1966
Graphite, soot, and erasure or scraping on paper
Image/sheet: 50.2 x 68.9 cm (19 3/4 x 27 1/8 inches)
The Albert Pilavin Memorial Collection of 20th Century American Art 72.051

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