
Abraham Walkowitz Russian-American, 1878-1965
17 1/2 × 11 in
Lines traverse the page, some darting and flaring outward, some horizontal and vertical. Around these carefully placed lines Walkowitz adds delicate pencil shading, enveloping the lines with an energetic atmosphere and sense of kinetic vibration within the composition. The eye darts around the page, entranced by the rhythmic motion captured within this charming and memorable work on paper. The artist was often inspired by New York, despite this work being a pure abstraction, these lines encapsulate the frantic energy in the city at the time.
Notably this work was created during a period of great creative innovation; 1913, the year of the famous New York 'Armory show’. The show was the first large exhibition of modern art in America and featured Fauvist, Cubist, Futurist, and Expressionist works by artists such as Matisse, Duchamp and Picasso.