Artwork
National Geographic (Capital)
National Geographic (Capital) is a print by Sarah Morris. It dates from 2001 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
This screenprint by Sarah Morris is part of a 2001 limited-edition portfolio published by SHOWstudio, which brought together works from diverse creative fields.
This screenprint by Sarah Morris is part of a 2001 limited-edition portfolio published by SHOWstudio, which brought together works from diverse creative fields. The piece is derived from Morris’s painted compositions and reflects her interest in urban architecture and spatial abstraction. It exists not as a standalone work but as one component within a curated collection of art, photography, and fashion ephemera, designed to capture contemporary visual culture.
Subject & Meaning
The image abstracts the visual language of modernist architecture, particularly glass-and-steel skyscrapers, into a rigid grid of primary and neutral tones. It evokes the geometry of urban environments—facades, windows, and structural divisions—without depicting them literally. The composition suggests both order and confinement, reflecting the psychological weight of dense city living through minimal, angular forms.
Technique & Style
Executed as a screenprint, the work employs flat, unmodulated color fields and sharp linear boundaries, echoing the formal discipline of early 20th-century geometric abstraction. Morris strips away narrative and texture, focusing instead on spatial relationships and directional tension within the plane. The technique reinforces the mechanical precision of her subject matter, aligning the medium with the industrial aesthetics she portrays.
History & Provenance
Created in 2001, the print was issued as part of a special box set by SHOWstudio, a platform known for its interdisciplinary approach to image-making. The portfolio included contributions from photographers, musicians, and designers, and was produced in limited numbers. This print is documented in museum collections, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, where it is cataloged under reference E.1066-2003.
Context
The work emerged during a period when artists were increasingly engaging with architecture, media, and consumer culture as subjects of abstraction. SHOWstudio’s project reflected a broader cultural moment in which boundaries between art, fashion, and digital media were dissolving. Morris’s contribution aligns with this shift, using formal simplicity to interrogate the visual rhythms of contemporary urban life.
Legacy
The print endures as an example of how contemporary artists reinterpreted modernist aesthetics through new media and collaborative formats. Its inclusion in institutional collections signals its role in documenting early 21st-century visual practices. As part of a broader archive of creative output from its time, it remains a reference point for discussions on abstraction, urbanism, and the intersection of art and design.
Artist & collection
Artist
Sarah Morris is an American and British artist. She lives in New York City in the United States.
