Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink print by Josef Albers. It dates from 1972 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1972, this untitled work is a screen‑printed folder that belongs to a two‑part portfolio comprising 66 similar folders. It is part of the Museum of Modern Art’s collection and exemplifies Albers’s systematic exploration of geometric abstraction through printmaking.
Subject & Meaning
The composition presents two adjacent blue squares, each containing white geometric forms that resemble boxes or ramps. The arrangement of these shapes, some leaning against one another and others isolated, generates a sense of movement and spatial tension within a flat field of bright blue.
Technique & Style
Albers employed screen printing to achieve crisp, flat areas of color and precise line work. By overlapping simple shapes and using contrasting hues, he creates an optical illusion of depth, despite the work’s strictly two‑dimensional surface.
History & Provenance
German‑born Josef Albers emigrated to the United States in 1933, where he became a pivotal figure in art education. This folder, produced during his later career, reflects his continued interest in color interaction and formal experimentation. It entered MoMA’s holdings as part of the museum’s acquisition of Albers’s printed series.
Context
The piece belongs to a broader series of screen‑printed folders that Albers designed to investigate the relationships between color, form, and perception. The series aligns with his pedagogical approach at the Bauhaus and later at Black Mountain College and Yale, where he emphasized systematic visual inquiry.
Artist & collection
Artist
Josef Albers ( AL-bərz, US also AHL-, German: ; March 19, 1888 – March 25, 1976) was a German-born American artist and educator who is considered one of the most influential 20th-century art teachers in the United States.
