Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an acrylic drawing by Jim Nutt. It dates from 1966 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created circa 1966, this acrylic work on plexiglass is attributed to Jim Nutt, a founding figure of the Chicago Imagists. The piece belongs to the collection of the Museum of Modern Art and exemplifies Nutt’s early experimentation with flat, graphic imagery rendered on a clear substrate.
Subject & Meaning
The composition presents a minimalist, almost toy‑like figure rendered in pale pinks and beiges. The face is featureless except for two tiny red dots serving as eyes, while the skin is speckled with minute marks that suggest freckles or scratches. The disproportionate limbs and the stark, unshaded plane give the figure an uncanny, child‑like quality.
Technique & Style
Nutt applied acrylic paint directly onto a sheet of plexiglass, allowing the smooth, non‑absorbent surface to emphasize crisp edges and uniform color fields. The lack of modeling or shadow reinforces a two‑dimensional appearance, while the use of bright, flat tones aligns with the graphic sensibilities of the Chicago Imagist movement.
History & Provenance
After its creation in the mid‑1960s, the work entered the Museum of Modern Art’s holdings, where it remains on view. Nutt’s education at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago informed his early practice, and the piece reflects his engagement with popular visual culture without aligning directly with mainstream Pop Art.
Context
During the 1960s, Chicago Imagists pursued a figurative, often surreal visual language that diverged from the dominant New York movements. Nutt’s work, with its exaggerated anatomy and cartoonish simplicity, illustrates the group’s interest in outsider art, comic strips, and mass‑media imagery, positioning the piece within a broader regional response to contemporary visual culture.
Artist & collection
Artist
James T. Nutt (born November 28, 1938) is an American artist who was a founding member of the Chicago surrealist art movement known as the Chicago Imagists, or the Hairy Who. Though his work is inspired by the same pop…
