Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink print by Maria Lassnig. It dates from 2008 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
The work belongs to the collection of the Museum of Modern Art and exemplifies Lassnig’s interest in bodily perception expressed through graphic means.
Created in 2008, this screenprint by Austrian artist Maria Lassnig presents a pair of gloves rendered in vivid hues and stark outlines. The composition isolates the gloves as the sole visual element, emphasizing their form through a minimalist approach. The work belongs to the collection of the Museum of Modern Art and exemplifies Lassnig’s interest in bodily perception expressed through graphic means.
Subject & Meaning
The image concentrates on a duo of gloves, stripped of surrounding context, inviting contemplation of the body’s extensions and the sensations associated with them. By foregrounding an everyday object, Lassnig extends her long‑standing exploration of “body awareness,” prompting viewers to consider the tactile and symbolic dimensions of clothing as a proxy for the human form.
Technique & Style
Executed as a screenprint, the piece relies on bold, unmodulated lines and saturated color fields. The graphic simplicity recalls the flatness of chiaroscuro‑inspired silhouettes, yet the medium allows for crisp separation between foreground and background. The reduction to basic shapes underscores the artist’s preference for direct visual language over elaborate detail.
History & Provenance
Maria Lassnig, the first woman to receive Austria’s Grand Austrian State Prize in 1988, taught painting at the University of Applied Arts Vienna from 1980 until her death in 2014. This 2008 work entered the Museum of Modern Art’s collection, reflecting the institution’s commitment to representing late‑career prints by artists noted for their investigations of bodily perception.
Artist & collection
Artist
Maria Lassnig (8 September 1919 – 6 May 2014) was an Austrian artist known for her painted self-portraits and her theory of "body awareness".
