Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink drawing by Mira Schendel. It dates from 1974 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1974, this untitled work by Brazilian artist Mira Schendel combines typewritten text, ink markings, and transferred type on a single sheet of paper.
Created in 1974, this untitled work by Brazilian artist Mira Schendel combines typewritten text, ink markings, and transferred type on a single sheet of paper. The composition consists of densely packed typed passages interlaced with handwritten annotations, crossed‑out phrases, and graphic symbols that together generate a layered visual field. The piece is part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
Subject & Meaning
The surface functions as a visual journal in which ideas about societal limits, economic conditions, and abstract concepts are recorded, erased, and re‑examined. By juxtaposing formal typewritten language with spontaneous ink gestures, Schendel foregrounds the instability of meaning and the process of thought itself, inviting viewers to contemplate the fluid boundary between written communication and visual expression.
Technique & Style
Schendel employed a mechanical typewriter to produce precise lettering, then overlaid it with ink‑based scribbles, circles, arrows, and a small grid of dots reminiscent of a constellation. Transfer type—an early method of reproducing typefaces—adds another layer of printed texture. The resulting assemblage balances order and disorder, reflecting the artist’s ongoing investigation of language as both visual form and conceptual tool.
History & Provenance
The work was created during a period when Schendel was intensively exploring the interplay of text and image, a theme that recurs throughout her oeuvre. After its completion, the piece entered the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, where it has been displayed as an example of her experimental approach to drawing and her broader contributions to contemporary art.
Artist & collection
Artist
Mira Schendel (June 7, 1919 – July 24, 1988) was a 20th-century Brazilian contemporary artist.
