Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an oil painting by Alexej von Jawlensky. It dates from 1910 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created around 1910, this untitled work by Alexei Jawlensky is an oil painting executed on cardboard that has been mounted on canvas. The composition presents a solitary head rendered with stark, unmodulated hues—a yellow complexion, dark eyes, a red neck, and a deep‑blue background. The piece belongs to the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Subject & Meaning
The portrait reduces the human face to essential geometric forms, emphasizing color relationships rather than anatomical detail. The eyes are rendered as dark ovals, the nose and mouth are suggested by simple black strokes, and the overall effect is one of abstraction that invites contemplation of the figure’s inner presence through surface color alone.
Technique & Style
Jawlensky applied the oil paint in thick, uneven layers that protrude from the support, a hallmark of impasto that gives the surface a tactile quality. The brushwork is vigorous and appears scraped in places, creating a textured contrast between the flat expanses of yellow skin and the richly saturated blue background.
History & Provenance
The painting entered the Museum of Modern Art’s holdings after being acquired by the institution, though the exact date of purchase is not recorded in the available sources. Its presence in MoMA’s collection situates it among other early twentieth‑century experiments in color and form that defined the artist’s mature period.
Artist & collection
Artist
Alexej Georgewitsch von Jawlensky (Russian: Алексе́й Гео́ргиевич Явле́нский, romanized: Alekséy Geórgiyevich Yavlénskiy; 13 March 1864 – 15 March 1941), surname also spelt as Yavlensky, was a Russian expressionist painter active in Germany.
