Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink print by Lucy McKenzie. It dates from 2006 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 2006, Untitled is a screenprint by Lucy McKenzie, part of The Museum of Modern Art’s collection. The work presents a seated figure rendered in flat, restrained tones against a pale background. Its quiet composition and deliberate use of color reflect McKenzie’s interest in the intersection of graphic design, portraiture, and cultural symbolism.
Subject & Meaning
The figure, depicted from the chest up and facing left, wears a light blue shirt with a white collar and red glasses. Their short blonde hair and neutral expression suggest anonymity, while the averted gaze resists direct engagement. The absence of narrative context invites interpretation around identity, representation, and the performative nature of appearance in contemporary visual culture.
Technique & Style
McKenzie employed screenprinting to achieve sharp, uniform areas of color with minimal texture. The off-white background contrasts with scattered red brushstrokes that introduce subtle movement without disrupting the composition’s stillness. The figure’s outline is clean and precise, aligning with commercial print aesthetics while retaining a hand-altered, almost arbitrary quality.
History & Provenance
The work entered The Museum of Modern Art’s collection shortly after its creation. It is one of several prints from McKenzie’s early 2000s series exploring mediated imagery and gendered visual codes. No prior ownership history is publicly documented, suggesting it was acquired directly from the artist or her gallery.
Context
McKenzie’s practice in this period engaged with the legacy of modernist design and the aesthetics of advertising, often recontextualizing familiar visual motifs. Untitled reflects her interest in how identity is constructed through clothing, posture, and graphic style—drawing from sources as varied as 1970s editorial photography and socialist poster design.
Legacy
Untitled exemplifies McKenzie’s contribution to contemporary printmaking by merging conceptual rigor with formal restraint. It has been referenced in discussions of post-conceptual portraiture and the use of commercial techniques to question authorship and representation. The work remains a quiet but persistent presence in studies of 21st-century image-making.
Artist & collection
