Untitled
1963
charcoal
From the collection of Museum of Modern Art
Untitled is a 1963 charcoal by Ronnie Elliott, depicting fur, held at Museum of Modern Art.
You see a tall, smudgy rectangle of charcoal—no faces, no objects, just layers of dark strokes that fade into gray. Elliott made this in 1963, when most artists were painting bright Pop colors. Instead, he stuck with black and white, letting the paper show through like light between trees. The marks look quick, but each line is placed carefully, almost like handwriting. If you like how charcoal can feel both rough and delicate, look up cross-hatching.
