Artwork
Movement No. 6, Provincetown
Movement No. 6, Provincetown is an unspecified painting by Marsden Hartley. It dates from 1916 and is held in the collection of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1916 by American modernist Marsden Hartley, Movement No. 6, Provincetown is an oil painting now in the collection of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. The work presents a compact still‑life arrangement that centers on a single blossom, rendered with a restrained palette and simplified forms.
Subject & Meaning
The composition features a pink‑and‑white flower placed in a green vase against a muted gray backdrop. By isolating the bloom, Hartley draws attention to its delicate structure while allowing the surrounding space to suggest an abstracted environment, inviting contemplation of form over narrative.
Technique & Style
Hartley employs bold, linear outlines and flat areas of color, characteristic of his early modernist approach. The limited tonal range, light gray fields punctuated by darker geometric shapes, creates a subtle sense of depth without relying on traditional modeling, emphasizing surface and pattern over illusionistic space.
History & Provenance
The painting was produced during Hartley’s Provincetown period, a time when he explored simplified compositions and a more graphic visual language. After changing hands several times, it entered the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, where it is displayed as part of the institution’s representation of early 20th‑century American modernism.
Artist & collection
Artist
Marsden Hartley was an American Modernist painter, poet, and essayist. Hartley developed his painting abilities by observing Cubist artists in Paris and Berlin.
Museum
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
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