Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink print by Ellsworth Kelly. It dates from 1995 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Ellsworth Kelly’s 1995 lithograph, titled Untitled, presents a single, vivid red form set against a stark white field. The shape resembles a curved segment of a circle and occupies the majority of the left side of the sheet, creating a balanced yet asymmetrical composition that foregrounds color and geometry without representational reference.
Subject & Meaning
The work reduces visual language to one hue and one shape, inviting viewers to consider the interaction of color, edge, and space. By eliminating narrative content, Kelly emphasizes the autonomous presence of the form, encouraging an experience of pure visual perception rather than symbolic interpretation.
Technique & Style
Executed as a lithograph, the image relies on a flat, uniform application of pigment, with no visible brushwork or gradation. The print exemplifies Kelly’s hard‑edge approach, where crisp contours and saturated fields of color dominate, reflecting his long‑standing interest in minimal, geometric abstraction.
History & Provenance
Created in the later period of Kelly’s career, the lithograph entered the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, where it remains part of the institution’s holdings of his prints. Its acquisition aligns with MoMA’s broader commitment to documenting the evolution of American minimalism.
Context
Produced during a phase when Kelly concentrated on elementary forms, the piece belongs to a series exploring variations on single shapes across multiple prints. This focus on reduction parallels contemporaneous developments in Color Field painting and minimalism, situating the work within mid‑late‑20th‑century abstract discourse.
Artist & collection
Artist
Ellsworth Kelly (May 31, 1923 – December 27, 2015) was an American painter, sculptor, and printmaker associated with hard-edge painting, Color field painting and minimalism.
