Wayne Thiebaud
Neapolitan Meringue1986–1999
pastel over lithograph
14 x 16 1/2 in.
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Warren Unna, Terry and Margaret Stent, and the Thiebaud Family, and museum purchase in honor of Nan Tucker McEvoy
Wayne Thiebaud endows his subjects with a sense of joy and eloquence. He created Neapolitan Meringue in 1999 as a pastel drawing over a lithograph from 1986. He has obliterated the lithographic lines under a dense layer of powdery pastel to transform a familiar composition into a sumptuous treat that simultaneously glows and reflects light.
