Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink print by Sam Moyer. It dates from 2021 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
About this work
Overview
Lithography, the chosen technique, allows for subtle variations in ink density and edge quality, which Moyer exploits to disrupt visual predictability.
Sam Moyer, born in 1983 in Chicago and based in Brooklyn, produced this untitled lithograph in 2021. It resides in The Museum of Modern Art’s print collection. The work is part of her broader exploration of materiality and abstraction, using printmaking to investigate surface, texture, and the physicality of image-making. Lithography, the chosen technique, allows for subtle variations in ink density and edge quality, which Moyer exploits to disrupt visual predictability.
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on a large blue form, its edges softened by a blurred, circular mass that hovers near the center. Below, the surface darkens and fractures into irregular patches, with faint white residues emerging as if partially erased. These layers suggest the residue of prior actions—scraping, smearing, or masking—inviting attention to process over representation. The work resists clear symbolism, instead emphasizing the trace of making.
Technique & Style
Lithography was employed to transfer ink from a stone surface to paper, a method that retains the hand of the artist through its inherent variability. Moyer manipulated the stone to create uneven ink distribution, resulting in a surface that appears scraped or partially worn. The texture is deliberately inconsistent, contrasting with the smoothness often associated with commercial printing. This tactile irregularity becomes a formal language in itself.
History & Provenance
Created in 2021, the lithograph entered The Museum of Modern Art’s collection shortly after its production. It is one of several works by Moyer acquired by the institution during a period of renewed interest in abstract printmaking. No prior exhibition or ownership history is documented beyond its immediate acquisition by MoMA, suggesting a direct path from studio to collection.
Context
Moyer’s practice aligns with a generation of artists who revisit abstraction through non-traditional means, often engaging with the legacies of Color Field painting and process art. Her work is frequently compared to that of Helen Frankenthaler, R. H. Quaytman, and Cheyney Thompson, all of whom interrogate the boundaries between painting and print. Unlike pure abstraction, her pieces retain evidence of material intervention, bridging gesture and reproduction.
Legacy
This lithograph contributes to an expanding dialogue around print as a medium capable of conveying material complexity rather than mere reproduction. Moyer’s use of lithography to simulate the unpredictability of paint challenges assumptions about the medium’s precision. Her work encourages a reconsideration of how process, imperfection, and layering can redefine abstract expression in contemporary printmaking.
Artist & collection
Artist
Sam Moyer (born 1983, Chicago, Illinois) is an American artist living and working in Brooklyn, New York. Her work has been positioned alongside that of artists Mika Tajima, R. H. Quaytman, Cheyney Thompson, and Helen Frankenthaler.
