Untitled

Theodore Roszak, Untitled, 1959, pen and ink and ink wash on paper, sheet and image: 11 x 8 ³⁄₈ in. (27.8 x 21.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Adelyn D. Breeskin, 1968.13.14

Artwork Details

Title: Untitled
Artist: Theodore Roszak
Date: 1959
Location: Not on view
Dimensions: sheet and image: 11 x 8 ³⁄₈ in. (27.8 x 21.4 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Adelyn D. Breeskin
Mediums: ink
Mediums Description: pen and ink and ink wash on paper
Classifications: Drawing
Subjects: Abstract
Object Number: 1968.13.14
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1968.13.14

Artwork Description

Theodore Roszak's bold, explosive forms echo the hopes and fears of American society in the 1950s. As the nation emerged from World War II into a decade of innovation and prosperity, Atomic-Age scientific achievements exposed the fragility of human life. Here the artist translates that tension by allowing aggressive, gestural lines to bleed into an ink wash background, giving organic energy to this prickly cluster. Roszak had worked as a welder in an aviation factory during the war, and such sharp, extended shapes -- suggesting bird and airplane wings -- appear often in his abstract drawings and welded metal sculptures.