Contrathemis

Dwinell Grant, Contrathemis, 1941, 16mm film, color, silent; 08:00 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.36, © 1941, Jean O’Hart Grant

Artwork Details

Title
Contrathemis
Artist
Date
1941
Location
Not on view
Copyright
© 1941, Jean O’Hart Grant
Credit Line
Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost
Mediums
Mediums Description
16mm film, color, silent; 08:00 minutes
Classifications
Subjects
  • Abstract — geometric
Object Number
1986.92.36
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1986.92.36

Artwork Description

Dwinell Grant’s pioneering film Contrathemis is a stop-motion animation made from more than 4,000 colored-pencil drawings and paper collages that were individually photographed and sequenced on 16mm film. Geometric shapes swim across pulsating hues of rich color in a stylistic progression Grant labeled “organized field.” A dynamic lighting sequence was constructed using automobile headlights covered with colored gels to backlight each frame. Eager to break free from the margins of the page, Grant drove static compositions into motion, celebrating the infinite potential of shape, color, and time.


Watch This!: Revelations in Media Art, 2015

Works by this artist (16 items)

View all artworks
Dwinell Grant, Contrathemis, 1941, 16mm film, color, silent; 08:00 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.36, © 1941, Jean O’Hart Grant
Contrathemis
Artist
Date1941
16mm film, color, silent; 08:00 minutes
Not on view
Dwinell Grant, "Contrathemis", Frame 2401, 1941, crayon on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.35, © 1941, Jean O’Hart Grant
“Contrathemis”, Frame 2401
Artist
Date1941
crayon on paper
Not on view
Dwinell Grant, Collage for film "Contrathemis", Frame 570, 1941, paper and colored pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1981.98
Collage for film ​“Contrathemis”, Frame 570
Artist
Date1941
paper and colored pencil on paper
Not on view
Dwinell Grant, Untitled, 1936, watercolor on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.31
Untitled
Artist
Date1936
watercolor on paper
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Browse All Artworks
David Haxton, Vertical and Receding Lines, 1974, 16mm film, black and white, silent; 05:30 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 2011.15.2, © 1974, David Haxton
Vertical and Receding Lines
Artist
Date1974
16mm film, black and white, silent; 05:30 minutes
Not on view
Hans Breder, Quanta, 1967, single-channel video, color, silent; 03:46 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 2013.50.4, © 1967, Hans Breder
Quanta
Artist
Date1967
single-channel video, color, silent; 03:46 minutes
Not on view
Image Not Available
Eureka
Artist
Date1974
16 mm Plus-X print, black and white, silent; 30:00 minutes
Not on view
Carolee Schneemann, Viet Flakes, 1965, 16mm film transferred to video, toned black & white, sound; 07:00 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible by the Ford Motor Company, 2008.21.9, © 1965 Carolee Schneemann Foundation. Courtesy Electronic Arts Intermix, NY
Viet Flakes
Artist
Date1965
16mm film transferred to video, toned black & white, sound; 07:00 minutes
Not on view