Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink print by Michael Craig-Martin. It dates from 2004 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 2004, this portfolio consists of twelve screenprints by Irish-born artist Michael Craig-Martin.
Created in 2004, this portfolio consists of twelve screenprints by Irish-born artist Michael Craig-Martin. Each print presents a single everyday object rendered with precise, flat color and bold black outlines. The series exemplifies Craig-Martin’s long-standing interest in the relationship between visual representation and the physical presence of ordinary items, stripped of context and function.
Subject & Meaning
The portfolio features common domestic objects, including a kettle and a high-heeled shoe, isolated against monochrome backgrounds. These items are not depicted functionally but as visual signs—detached from use, they invite contemplation of how meaning is assigned to things through form and color. The pairing of unrelated objects underscores a conceptual interest in the arbitrary nature of association.
Technique & Style
Each print employs screenprinting to achieve uniform, saturated color fields and sharp, unmodulated outlines. The forms are simplified to their essential shapes, with no shading or texture. The contrast between vivid hues—purple, green, orange, pink—and the neutral backgrounds emphasizes clarity and visual immediacy, reflecting Craig-Martin’s commitment to graphic precision over expressive brushwork.
History & Provenance
Produced in 2004, the portfolio emerged during a period when Craig-Martin was widely recognized for his pedagogical influence at Goldsmiths and his role in shaping British conceptual art. While specific exhibition history is not documented here, the work aligns with his broader practice of translating everyday objects into formal, reproducible images, consistent with his output from the 1970s onward.
Context
Craig-Martin’s work responds to post-war conceptual art movements that prioritized ideas over aesthetics. His approach echoes the influence of Pop Art and Minimalism, yet diverges by avoiding irony or mass-cultural commentary. Instead, he focuses on the perceptual act of seeing—how objects become images, and how images, in turn, acquire presence without utility.
Legacy
This portfolio reinforces Craig-Martin’s contribution to redefining representation in contemporary printmaking. By reducing objects to graphic symbols, he expanded the possibilities of screenprinting as a medium for conceptual inquiry. His influence persists in the work of artists who treat the image as a neutral vessel for perception rather than narrative or emotion.
Artist & collection
Artist
Sir Michael Craig-Martin (born 28 August 1941) is an Irish-born contemporary conceptual artist and painter.
