%C2%A9 Estate of Louisa Chase
Untitled, 1988
Louisa Chaseexpand_more
Watercolor and ink on paperexpand_more
Gift of Mary and Bob Merskyexpand_more 2017.115.4
Not on Viewexpand_more
A pioneering figure of the Neo-Expressionist movement that emerged in the 1970s, Louisa Chase combines elements of expressive, gestural abstraction with symbolic representations. Here, the scene’s simplified imagery features a field of gestural marks in black and gray intermingled with various geometric shapes in primary colors. The contrast between the linear elements and solid forms is unsettling, suggesting conflict between order and chaos. Art historian Ruth Fine commented on the feeling of discomfort emanating from Chase’s imagery, describing a disjointed world that “reminds us of our fractured experience.” Others have deemed her dream-like imagery as analogous to “landscapes of the mind,” works rich in emotional symbolism that function as a pictorial metaphor for the artist’s own state of mind. Like much of her work, Chase’s drawing is untitled to ensure an unmediated response on the part of the viewer, who must assign meaning subjectively.
Details
- Title
- Untitled
- Artist Life
- American (born Panama), 1951–2016
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2017.115.4
- Provenance
- The artist, New York; (Brooke Alexander Gallery, New York, Inv. no. LOC-88-DR-014, sold to Mersky March, 10, 1989); Robert B. Mersky, Minneapolis, 1989-2017; given to MIA, 2017.
- Curator Approved
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© Estate of Louisa Chase