Untitled

About this work

You see a black-and-white screenprint of sharp angles: a fire escape, a streetlamp, a few bare windows. Crawford flattened the scene so the shadows look like cut paper. The print was made in 1941, when most artists were still painting. Using a screen—a tool for posters and ads—felt almost rebellious. If you like how he turned a city block into a puzzle, look up the technique called chiaroscuro.