Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is a graphite painting by the Cubism Synthetic artist Morton Livingston Schamberg. It dates from 1916 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
4 cm in width, the composition is abstract, relying on linear and tonal variation rather than representational form.
The work is executed in graphite on paper, a medium associated with drawing rather than traditional painting, and is catalogued as a painting in the institution's records. Measuring 13.7 cm in height by 11.4 cm in width, the composition is abstract, relying on linear and tonal variation rather than representational form. The handling emphasizes delicate, controlled mark-making with graphite, producing a restrained yet precise graphic quality that aligns with early 20th-century abstract tendencies.
History & Provenance
The work titled Untitled was created by Morton Livingston Schamberg in 1916. Executed in graphite on paper, this abstract piece measures 13.7 cm in height and 11.4 cm in width. The artwork is currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
No further details regarding the specific commission, the chain of ownership prior to the museum, or the precise circumstances of its creation are provided in the available records.
The 1916 graphite work Untitled by Morton Livingston Schamberg is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. While the museum houses the piece, the provided sources do not disclose a specific inventory or accession number for this drawing. The work has not been listed in any exhibition history within the available records. The artwork depicts an abstract composition and measures 13.7 cm in height by 11.4 cm in width.
Context
Untitled (1916) by Morton Livingston Schamberg is a graphite drawing held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is described as an abstract work on paper measuring 13.7 cm in height and 11.4 cm in width. Schamberg, an early American modernist associated with the Precisionist movement and closely linked to photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Steichen, developed this piece during a period of experimentation with abstraction in the 1910s. The work exemplifies his transition from illustration toward a more stripped-down visual language that aligned with broader modernist shifts in American art.
Overview
Created in 1916, this graphite work by American modernist Morton Livingston Schamberg is catalogued simply as Untitled. The drawing resides in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It presents an abstracted interior scene rendered in stark monochrome, reflecting the artist’s engagement with early twentieth‑century Cubist ideas.
Subject & Meaning
The composition depicts a distorted interior: a tilted room contains a table, a chair, a lamp hanging askew, and a seated figure whose proportions are exaggerated. The fragmented geometry and elongated limbs convey a sense of unreality, suggesting a dreamlike or puzzle‑like space rather than a literal depiction of a domestic setting.
Artist & collection
Artist
Morton Livingston Schamberg (October 15, 1881 – October 13, 1918) was an American modernist painter and photographer.
