Who painted Untitled?

Untitled was painted by Jo Davidson.

Where can I see Untitled?

Untitled is held by Victoria and Albert Museum.

Artwork

Untitled

Untitled is a photographic photography by Jo Davidson. It is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The work is a black‑and‑white photograph mounted on a green backing card.

About this work

Overview

The work is a black‑and‑white photograph mounted on a green backing card. It presents a close‑up view of a rough clay bust depicting an elderly male figure, rendered without any surrounding environment. The image captures the tactile qualities of the unfinished sculpture, emphasizing surface marks and the model’s aged features.

Subject & Meaning

The bust portrays an older man with a pronounced mustache, deep‑set eyes, and a heavily wrinkled face. The unfinished texture, visible finger marks, and uneven patches suggest an early stage in the sculptor’s process, inviting viewers to consider the transformation from raw material to finished form.

Technique & Style

Photographed in monochrome, the image highlights the contrast between light and shadow on the clay’s surface, making the tactile irregularities prominent. The close framing eliminates contextual cues, focusing attention on the materiality of the model and the sculptor’s hand at work.

History & Provenance

The photograph is part of a collection donated by William Kineton Parkes in 1938. Parkes, a novelist and art historian noted for his scholarship on sculpture, gathered responses from sculptors during the 1920s; this image was among the submissions he received to complete his questionnaires.

Context

The image reflects early‑20th‑century practices of documenting sculptural studies, a period when artists and scholars increasingly exchanged visual material to inform theoretical discourse on form and process. It serves as a visual record of a sculptor’s preliminary work, aligning with Parkes’s interest in the development of sculptural ideas.