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Untitled

Robert Kushner

1980

ink

From the collection of Museum of Modern Art

Contemporary Floral Floral Pattern

Dominant colour

Untitled is a 1980 ink by Robert Kushner, depicting Floral Pattern, held at Museum of Modern Art.

Who painted this?: Robert Kushner
When & what style?: 1980
Where can I see it?: Museum of Modern Art

About this work

You see a tall, skinny etching of looping vines—some thick, some thin, all twisting like they’re climbing a hidden trellis. Kushner made this in 1980, when patterns were his whole world. He used three printmaking tricks: etching (scratching lines into metal), drypoint (digging deeper grooves for fuzzy edges), and aquatint (a sprinkle of resin that makes soft, grainy shadows). If you like these tangled lines, look up the technique: etching, drypoint, aquatint.